Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Photosynthetic parameter'

Em seu habitat natural as algas estão sujeitas a ação simultânea de vários fatores, como radiação (fotossinteticamente ativa e ultravioleta), temperatura, salinidade e disponibilidade de nutrientes, entre outros. A variação desses fatores no ambiente natural ocorre de forma coletiva e uma rápida resposta do organismo é determinante pra sua sobrevivência. Neste trabalho foram conduzidos experimentos relacionados aos efeitos da variação nos parâmetros ambientais sobre a macroalga Gracilaria domingensis. Três linhagens cromáticas dessa espécie foram cultivadas no mar, em diferentes épocas do ano (estações chuvosa e seca). Os dados fotossintéticos e bioquímicos foram acessados em uma escala de tempo referente às variações observadas durante o período de luz do dia e em uma escala referente às variações observadas em semanas. Os resultados obtidos a partir de análises dos parâmetros fotossintéticos, conteúdo pigmentar, concentração de glutationa, concentração de aminoácidos tipo micosporina, conteúdo tecidual de carbono, nitrogênio e fósforo, teor de lipídeos e ácidos graxos e rendimento do ágar mostraram alterações no perfil bioquímico e fisiológico da macroalga. Essas alterações foram correlacionadas com os fatores abióticos e sugerem alterações no metabolismo como uma das estratégias de aclimatação da espécie.
In their natural habitat algae are exposed to simultaneous action of various factors, as radiation (photosynthetically active radiation and ultraviolet), temperature, salinity, nutrient availability and others. The variation in these factors in the natural environment occurs collectively and the algae capability for quick response is determinant for survival. In this work, studies related to the effects of environmental variation on the macroalgae Gracilaria domingensis were performed. Three chromatic strains were cultivated in the sea, at different times of the year (dry and rainy seasons). Biochemical and photosynthetic responses were accessed on a daylight time scale and on a week time scale. The reached results for photosynthetic parameters, pigment content, glutathione concentrations, mycosporine-like amino acids concentrations, carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus tissue content, lipids and fatty acids levels and agar yield, revealed the altered biochemical and physiological profile of macroalgae. These changes were environment related and suggest metabolism changes as a strategy used by this organism to acclimate.

The development of new cultivars better adapted to specific growing conditions is a key strategy to meet an ever-increasing growing global food demand and search for more sustainable cropping systems. This is even more crucial in the context of a changing climate. Ecophysiological models and advanced computational techniques (e.g., sensitivity analysis, SA) represent powerful tools to analyze genotype (G) by environment (E) interactions, thus supporting breeders in identifying key traits for specific agro-environmental contexts. However, limits for the effective use of mathematical models within breeding programs are represented by the uncertainty in the distribution of plant trait values, the lack of processes dealing with resistance/tolerance traits in most ideotyping studies, the partial suitability of current crop models for ideotyping purposes, and the absence of modelling tools directly usable by breeders. The aim of this research was to address these issues improving methodologies already in use, proposing new paradigms for the development of crop models explicitly targeting ideotyping applications and developing tools that would encourage a deep interaction of the modelling and breeding communities. The focus was on rice, for its role as staple food for more than a half of world’s population, and on resistance/tolerance traits to biotic/abiotic stressors, for their central role in increasing crop adaptation. Moreover, current conditions and climate change projections were considered, to support the definition of strategies for breeding in the medium-long term. A standard procedure to quantify − and manage − the impact of the uncertainty in the distribution of plant trait values was developed, using the WARM rice model and the Sobol’ method as case study. The approach is based on a SA (generating sample of parameter distributions) of a SA (generating samples of parameters for each generated distribution) using distributions of jackknife statistics calculated on literature values to reproduce the uncertainty in defining parameters distributions. As a practical implication, the procedure developed allows identifying plant traits whose uncertainty in distribution can alter ideotyping results, i.e., traits whose distributions could need to be refined. Global SA was then used to identify rice traits putatively producing the largest yield benefits in five contrasting districts in the Philippines, India, China, Japan and Italy. The analysis involved phenotypic traits dealing with light interception, photosynthetic efficiency, tolerance to abiotic stressors, resistance to fungal pathogens and grain quality. Results suggested that breeding for traits involved with disease resistance and tolerance to cold- and heat-induced spikelet sterility could provide benefits similar to those obtained from improving traits affecting potential yield. Instead, advantages resulting from varying traits involved with grain quality were markedly frustrated by inter-annual weather variability. Since results highlighted strong G×E interactions, a new index to derive district-specific ideotypes was developed. Given the key role of biotic/abiotic stressors in determining actual yield and the deep impact of related G×E interactions, a study was carried out by explicitly focusing on the definition of rice ideotypes improved for their resistance to fungal pathogens and tolerance to abiotic constraints (temperature shocks inducing sterility). The analysis was carried out at district level with a high spatial resolution (5 km × 5 km elementary simulation unit), targeting the improvement of the most representative 34 varieties in six Italian rice districts. Genetic improvement was simulated via the introgression of traits from donor varieties. Results clearly showed that breeders should focus on increasing resistance to blast disease, as this appears as a factor markedly limiting rice yields in Italy, regardless of the districts and climate scenarios, whereas benefits deriving from improving tolerance to cold-induced sterility could be markedly affected by G×E interactions. To reduce the risk of discrepancies between in silico ideotypes and their in vivo realizations, both studies involved only model parameters with a close relationship with phenotypic traits breeders are working on. However, a long-term strategy to overcome limitations related with the partial suitability of available models would be building new ideotyping-specific models explicitly around traits involved in breeding programs. This proposal for a paradigm shift in model development was illustrated taking salt stress tolerance and rice as a case study. Dedicated growth chamber experiments were conducted to develop a new model explicitly accounting for tolerance traits modulating Na+ uptake and distribution in plant tissues, as well as the impact of the accumulated Na+ on photosynthesis, senescence and spikelet sterility. An ideotyping study was conducted at two sites (in Greece and California) characterized by different seasonal dynamics of salinity in field water. Results showed how, under different scenarios, traits assuring the largest contribution to the overall tolerance could refer to completely different physiological mechanisms: tissue tolerance in one case, sodium exclusion in the other. This encourages the development of explicit trait-based approaches to increase the integration of crop models within breeding programs. A parallel path to achieve this goal is the development of modelling platforms targeting breeders as final users, who does not have necessarily in-depth skills in crop modelling and IT. The platform ISIde, derived from a close collaboration between target users, biophysical modelers and IT specialists, represents the first prototype of a platform specifically developed for being used directly by breeders to evaluate in silico improved varieties at district level. This thesis demonstrated the usefulness of simulation models for the definition of ideotypes for specific agro-environmental conditions. Targeting ideotyping applications, new methodologies, paradigms for model development and modelling tools were developed, thus contributing to improve the potential of crop modelling to support breeding programs. Future developments will target researches aimed at overcoming the limits behind this study, i.e., (i) absence of explicit interactions between traits, (ii) no adaptation strategies considered, and (iii) lack of approaches for the simulation of the evolutionary potential of pathogens in response to long-term climate variations and increased host resistance.

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Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior
The inorganic forms of arsenic (As), arsenate (AsV) and arsenite (AsIII) are considered the most toxic as well as the most found in plants. As contamination in foods represents a great risk to the public health, since it is considered the second mainly way of contamination by this metalloid. Therefore, lettuce plants (Lactuca sativa cv Hanson) were exposed to different AsV and AsIII concentrations, 0.0, 6.6, 13.2, 26.4 and 52.8 μmol L-1 for three days. It was evaluated As accumulation and distribution in roots and leaves, and its effect on vegetal growth, gas exchange, fluorescence of chlorophyll a and chlorophylls and carotenoids concentration, as well as on mineral nutrition, evaluating the concentration of calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), phosphorus (P), iron (Fe), manganese (Mn) and copper (Cu) and the regulation of the antioxidant enzymatic system as superoxide dismutase (SOD), total peroxidases (POD), catalase (CAT), glutathione reductase (GR) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX). The tested plants accumulated significant amounts of As with the increment of AsV and AsIII concentration in the nutrient solution, in leaves and roots, observing higher accumulation in roots. This fact promoted reduction in gas exchange parameters as liquid photosynthesis (A), stomatal conductance (gS), transpiration (E) and effective use of water (EUW), except at 6.6 μmol L-1 AsV. The internal concentration of CO2 (Ci) increased at the highest AsV and AsIII concentrations, which indicated changes in the biochemical phase of photosynthesis. The parameters of fluorescence of chlorophyll a were changed with reduction on photochemical quenching (qP), electron transport rate (ETR), followed by the increment in non-photochemical quenching (NPQ), which showed a change in the photochemical phase of photosynthetic process. In consequence, plant growth was affected, except the roots of plants that were exposed to the concentration of 6.6 μmol L-1 AsV. The exposition of plants to AsV and AsIII resulted in increasing lipid peroxidation as observed by the increment in malonaldehyde (MDA), an indicator of the action of the oxidative stress. However, this oxidative stress was not able to affect tylacoid membrane and cloroplastic pigments concentration, chlorophylls and carotenoids, as observed by the unaltered minimal fluorescence (F0) and potential photochemical efficiency of photosystem II (Fv/Fm). The oxidative stress followed by the direct damages suffered by the roots, promoted changes in the mineral nutrition of leaves and roots. The concentration of nutrients involved with tolerance mechanisms, as Ca and Mg, were increased. The concentration of 6.6 μmol L-1, of both chemical forms promoted increment in phosphorus (P) concentration, not being this result observed at the highest concentrations of AsV and AsIII. The probably reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced, due to the exposition to AsV and AsIII promoted changes in the antioxidant enzymatic system. In the leaves, it was observed an increment in the activities of SOD, CAT, POX and APX, whereas in the roots, of SOD, CAT and GR, characterizing differentiated tolerance mechanism in leaves and roots.
As formas inorgânicas de arsênio (As), arsenato (AsV) e arsenito (AsIII) são consideradas as mais tóxicas sendo também, as mais encontradas em plantas. A contaminação de As em alimentos representa um grande risco à saúde pública, já que essa é considerada a segunda principal forma de contaminação por esse metalóide. Assim, plantas de alface (Lactuca sativa cv Hanson) foram expostas a diferentes concentrações de AsV e AsIII, 0,0; 6,6; 13,2; 26,4 e 52,8 μmol L-1, por três dias. Foram avaliados o acúmulo e a distribuição de As em raízes e folhas e o efeito no crescimento vegetal, nas trocas gasosas, na fluorescência da clorofila a e na concentração de clorofilas e carotenóides, assim como as alterações na nutrição mineral, avaliando-se a concentração de cálcio (Ca), magnésio (Mg), fósforo (P), ferro (Fe), manganês (Mn) e cobre (Cu) e a regulação das enzimas do sistema antioxidante, como dismutase do superóxido (SOD), peroxidases totais (POX), catalase (CAT), redutase da glutationa (GR) e peroxidase do ascorbato (APX). As plantas testadas acumularam quantidades significativas de As, à medida que se aumentou a concentração de AsV e AsIII na solução nutritiva, em folhas e raízes, observando-se maior acúmulo nas raízes. Tal fato, promoveu redução nos parâmetros de trocas gasosas como fotossíntese líquida (A), condutância estomática (gS), transpiração (E) e eficiência do uso da água (EUA), exceto para 6,6 μmol L-1 AsV. A concentração interna de CO2 (Ci) aumentou nas maiores concentrações de AsV e AsIII, indicando alteração na etapa bioquímica da fotossíntese. Os parâmetros de fluorescência da clorofila a foram alterados, com redução no coeficiente de extinção fotoquímico (qP) e transporte relativo de elétrons (ETR), acompanhados do aumento do coeficiente de extinção não-fotoquímico (NPQ), evidenciando alteração na etapa fotoquímica do processo fotossintético. Em consequência, o crescimento das plantas foi afetado, à exceção das raízes daquelas expostas à concentração de 6,6 μmol L-1 de AsV. A exposição das plantas ao AsV e AsIII resultou em peroxidação de lipídios crescente, conforme observado pelo aumento na concentração de malonaldeído (MDA), indicativo de ação do estresse oxidativo. Entretanto, esse estresse oxidativo não foi capaz de afetar as membranas dos tilacóides e a concentração dos pigmentos cloroplastídicos, clorofilas e carotenóides, conforme observado pela inalteração da fluorescência mínima (F0) e da eficiência fotoquímica potencial do fotossistema II (Fv/Fm). O estresse oxidativo, acompanhado dos danos diretos sofridos pelo sistema radicular, promoveu alterações na nutrição mineral de folhas e raízes. A concentração dos nutrientes envolvidos com mecanismos de tolerância, como Ca e Mg, foram aumentadas. A concentração 6,6 μmol L-1, de ambas as formas químicas promoveu aumento na concentração de fósforo (P), não sendo esse resultado observados nas concentrações superiores de AsV e AsIII. A provável produção de espécies reativas de oxigênio (ROS), decorrentes da exposição ao AsV e AsIII promoveu alteração no sistema enzimático antioxidante. Nas folhas, observou-se aumento nas atividades da SOD, CAT, POX e APX, enquanto, nas raízes, da SOD, CAT e GR, caracterizando mecanismo de tolerância diferenciado nas folhas e raízes.

>Magister Scientiae - MSc
Biotic stress is one of the main causes for agricultural loss of economically important cereal crops. The increasing prevalence of biotic stress inflicted by fungal species such as Fusarium has significantly reduced yields and quality of cereals, threatening sustainable agriculture and food security worldwide. Interactions between wheat and Fusarium spp. such as Fusarium oxysporum promotes the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Overproduction of ROS can become toxic to plants depending on the scavenging ability of antioxidant systems to maintain redox homeostasis. This study investigated the effects of F. oxysporum on the physiological and biochemical response of three wheat cultivars namely, SST 056, SST 088 and SST 015. Physiological responses were monitored by measuring changes observed in plant growth parameters including shoot and root growth and biomass, relative water content as well as photosynthetic metabolism and osmolyte content in all three wheat cultivars. Downstream biochemical analysis involved monitoring the accumulation of ROS biomarkers (superoxide and hydrogen peroxide) as well as the detection of enzymatic activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and peroxidase (POD). These biochemical responses were only monitored on the two wheat cultivars which presented contrasting responses to F. oxysporum infection. Results showed that F. oxysporum significantly reduced plant growth, biomass, chlorophyll pigments and relative water content of all three cultivars, with the highest reduction observed for SST 088 relative to SST 015 and SST056. On the other hand, proline content was significantly enhanced in all three wheat cultivars, with the highest increase observed for SST 015 relative to SST 056 and SST 088. Based on the contrasting physiological results observed for these three cultivars, downstream biochemical analysis was focused on SST 015 and SST 088. F. oxysporum trigged an increased in superoxide and hydrogen peroxide contents in both cultivars, with the highest increase observed for SST 088. A similar trend was observed for the extent of lipid peroxidation, manifested as enhanced MDA levels. Furthermore, F. oxysporum differentially altered antioxidant enzyme activity relative to the control of both wheat cultivars. A Significant increase in SOD activity was observed for both cultivars in response to F. oxysporum. However, contrasting responses in APX and POD activity (as seen for the band intensities of individual isoforms) was observed in these wheat cultivars in response to F. oxysporum. Based on the results obtained in this study we suggest that F. oxysporum infection has varying degrees of severity in different wheat cultivars. In light of the significant reduction of plant development coupled with enhanced ROS accumulation and differential antioxidant capacity for SST 015 relative SST 088, we suggest that SST 015 is more resilient to F. oxysporum. We thus conclude that a direct relationship exists between ROS accumulation and antioxidant scavenging in regulating plant tolerance against F. oxysporum pathogens.

Phytoplankton chlorophyll-a fluorescence, measured in situ, can be applied as a tool to estimate primary production in the ocean over a large range of temporal and spatial scales. This non-invasive technique allows for fast assessments of photo-physiological parameters in contrast to the traditional methodologies (14C uptake and O2 evolution). The main photo-physiological parameters derived by the available instruments are yields, and as such, require careful interpretation. The comprehension of the main sources of variability of the photochemical and the light absorption efficiencies in marine phytoplankton has increased in the past years, largely by studies using monospecific cultures. In natural communities, however, the development of primary production models based on chlorophyll-a fluorescence remain limited as they are simultaneously subjected to a wide range of environmental and biological factors. This study will test the hypothesis that photo-physiological models for primary production estimates can be improved when key phytoplankton features, such as the pigments composition and dominant cell size, are taking into account. The approach was to contrast the photo-physiological parameters derived from measurements in distinct oceanographic regions, as well as those derived in a specific environment with presented different nutrient concentration according to the time of sampling. In addition, we showed for monospecific cultures, how the photo-physiological parameters are quantitatively related to the production of carbon under the interactive effects of taxonomic composition and cell size. The proportions of photosynthetic and photoprotective pigments present in the community were related to the bulk photochemical efficiency and the cross-section of light absorption, but varied among oceanographic regions and the depth of the water column. A parameterization of fluorescence-derived primary production rates, using four dominant size classes, was derived for natural phytoplankton communities under different nutrients conditions in a coastal environment, showing that the parameters differed among size classes above a threshold of nutrient concentration. The direct conversion rates between fluorescence-derived primary production and carbon assimilation rates, computed for two distinct phytoplankton cell sizes grown in controlled laboratorial conditions, showed that cell size strongly influences the efficiency of light absorption and photochemistry, however species-specific responses in photosynthetic energy allocation dominated the differences observed in how absorbed light is utilized to carbon assimilation, i.e., in the electron requirements for carbon assimilation. The results highlighted the importance of the tight coupling of nutrients availability and phytoplankton communities, as well as for measurements of chlorophyll-a fluorescence in the ocean and primary production models. This work presents a novel contribution to the increasing efforts to apply fluorescence-based techniques to understand and parameterize primary production estimates in marine systems, especially at highly dynamic environments.
A fluorescência da clorofila-a do fitoplâncton, medida in situ, pode ser uma ferramenta para estimar produção primária no oceano em grande escala temporal e espacial. Esta técnica não-invasiva permite análises rápidas de parâmetros foto-fisiológicos ao contrário de metodologias tradicionais (assimilação de 14C e produção de O2). Os principais parâmetros foto-fisiológicos de instrumentos disponíveis hoje tratam-se de eficiências, e como tal, requerem cuidados em serem interpretados. A compreensão das principais fontes de variabilidade da eficiência fotoquímica e de absorção de luz no fitoplâncton marinho tem aumentado nos últimos anos, em sua maioria em cultivos monoespecíficos. Em comunidades naturais, entretanto, o desenvolvimento de modelos de produção primária baseados na fluorescência da clorofila-a ainda é limitado uma vez que estão sujeitos à uma ampla gama de fatores ambientais e biológicos. Esse estudo testa a hipótese de que modelos foto-fisiológicos para estimar produção primária podem ser aprimorados considerando-se características fundamentais do fitoplâncton, como a composição de pigmentos e tamanho celular dominante. A estratégia foi contrastar parâmetros foto-fisiológicos derivados de medidas em regiões oceanográficas distintas, assim como medidas em um ambiente específico com diferentes concentrações de nutrientes ao longo do período amostrado. Adicionalmente, apresentamos através de cultivos monoespecíficos, como parâmetros foto-fisiológicos são quantitativamente relacionados à produção de carbono e os efeitos interativos da composição taxonômica e tamanho celular nessa relação. A proporção de pigmentos fotossintéticos e fotoprotetores da comunidade foram relacionados à eficiência fotoquímica e seção transversal de absorção de luz, porém variaram de acordo com a região oceanográfica e profundidade na coluna d\'água. Uma parameterização de taxas de produção primária derivadas da fluorescência, usando quatro classes de tamanho dominantes, foi proposta para comunidades naturais de fitoplâncton sob condições de nutrientes diferentes em um ambiente costeiro, mostrando que os parâmetros diferiram entre as classes de tamanho acima de um limiar de concentração de nutrientes. As taxas de conversão diretas entre produção primária derivada da fluorescência e taxas de assimilação de carbono, computadas para dois tamanhos de fitoplâncton crescidos em condições controladas em laboratório, mostraram que tamanho celular influencia as eficiências de absorção de luz e fotoquímica, porém respostas espécie-específicas na alocação de energia fotossintética dominaram as diferenças observadas em como a luz absorvida é utilizada para assimilação de carbono, ou seja, na razão de elétrons exigidos para assimilação de carbono. Os resultados destacam a importância do acoplamento da disponibilidade de nutrientes com a comunidade fitoplanctônica, assim como das medidas de fluorescência da clorofila-a no oceano e nos modelos de produção primária. Este trabalho apresenta uma contribuição inédita nos esforços crescentes em aplicar técnicas baseadas na fluorescência para entender e parameterizar estimativas de produção primária nos sistemas marinhos, especialmente em ambientes altamente dinâmicos.

Este trabalho envolve o estudo sobre os níveis de pigmentos fotossintéticos, carotenóides e clorofilas, presentes nas algas marinhas Tetraselmis gracilis e Gracilaria tenuistipitata, em condições de senescência celular e estresse antropogênico (poluição metálica). Em razão do papel fundamental dos carotenóides na organização de membranas tilacóides, o papel estrutural de carotenos e do extrato metanólico de T. gracilis em bicamadas lipídicas também foi avaliado. Para estes estudos foram realizados o cultivo, coleta e construção das curvas de crescimento das algas, obtenção dos cromatogramas típicos, identificação de alguns pigmentos fotossintéticos através de padrões, análise dos extratos brutos em diferentes fases de crescimento e respectiva quantificação. Foram realizados bioensaios de toxicidade dos metais Cd, Cu, Hg e Pb e foram estimados os parâmetros toxicológicos CE15 e CE50 (concentração efetiva para a redução de 15 e 50%, respectivamente, do crescimento algal). Os modelos de estresse agudo e crônico foram construídos para cada metal e a quantificação dos pigmentos fotossintéticos foi realizada. Lipossomos foram confeccionados com a incorporação de carotenos e do extrato metanólico de T. gracilis na bicamada e foram realizadas medidas de espalhamento de luz, de calorimetria, do diâmetro hidrodinâmico e de fosfolípides. A cinética de liberação e de permeação de NO foi estudada através de medidas de fluorescência e de quimiluminescência. Também foi realizada a extração e pré-isolamento dos carotenóides presentes em T. gracilis. Os mecanismos de defesa contra espécies reativas de oxigênio foram diferentes em razão das distintas variações observadas nos níveis de pigmentos para cada metal estudado e tipo de estresse. Também foi observado um aumento do nível de pigmentos em função do aumento do tempo de exposição correspondendo provavelmente a uma estratégia aclimatativa extremamente importante no papel de adaptação e sobrevivência de organismos fotossintéticos, o que torna este tipo de avaliação, principalmente dos níveis de carotenóides, uma ferramenta útil como parâmetro de avaliação de poluição ambiental, além do emprego da biomassa como ferramenta de biorremoção de metais. Em relação aos valores de CE50 observados, o valor encontrado para o Cu foi inferior ao padrão previsto na Resolução do CONAMA no 357. Portanto, efluentes contendo Cu em níveis permitidos poderão causar danos à biota marinha. Mais ainda, sugere-se que os limites recomendáveis para este metal deverão ser revistos e alterados para a preservação de ecossistemas aquáticos. A incorporação do extrato de T. gracilis ocasionou uma grande perturbação na estruturação da membrana, resultando na fluidificação da bicamada lipídica, independente da fase de crescimento. O β-caroteno e o licopeno interferem na estruturação de bicamadas lipídicas diminuindo o diâmetro hidrodinâmico das vesículas unilamelares grandes, efeito ainda não descrito na literatura, reduzindo o valor da temperatura na qual se inicia a transição de fase, alargando a faixa onde ocorre a transição, reduzindo os valores capacidade calorífica e da entalpia e, conseqüentemente, modificando a cooperatividade da transição. Somente o β-caroteno causou fluidificação do sistema lipídico e aumento da velocidade de permeação de NO através da membrana, sugerindo o provável papel do β-caroteno na modulação de propriedades físicas da membrana.
This work involves the study of the levels of photosynthetic pigments, carotenoids and chlorophylls, contained in the marine algae Tetraselmis gracilis and Gracilaria tenuistipitata, under conditions of cellular senescence and anthropogenic stress (metallic pollution). Due to the fundamental organizational role of carotenoids in thylakoid membranes, its structural features in lipid bilayers were evaluated. Also in this last mentioned study, it was employed the methanolic extract of T. gracilis. In order to perform these studies, the algae were cultivated and the growth curves determined. Also, the typical chromatograms were obtained, and some photosynthetic pigments were identified trough commercial standards, which were then analyzed and quantified in crude extracts of different growth phases. The toxicity of the metals Cd, Cu, Hg and Pb were determined trough bioassays, which led to the toxicological parameters EC15 and EC50 estimation (the effective concentration that causes 15 and 50% of reduction of the algal growth, respectively). For each metal, the acute and chronic stress models were built, and the photosynthetic pigments contents\' quantified. Liposomes were constructed with the incorporation of carotenes and of the T. gracilis\' methanolic extract in the bilayer, which were then submitted to light scattering, calorimetric, hydrodynamic radius and phospholipid assays. Fluorescence and chemiluminescence measurements were used to study the NO kinetics of liberation and permeation. Also, it was accomplished the extraction and pre-isolation of carotenes contained in T. gracilis. For each type of metal and stress occasioned, different levels of pigments were observed, a consequence of the different mechanisms employed against reactive oxygen species. At higher exposure periods, higher pigments\' contents were quantified, which probably corresponds to an algae acclimatative strategy. The EC50 value found for Cu is higher than the standard one previously stated in the CONAMA\'s nº 357 resolution. This means that effluents containing Cu, in levels allowed by the law, may cause damage to the marine biota. Moreover, it\'s suggested a reevaluation of the standard limiting value for this metal, in order to preserve aquatic ecosystems. A higher fluidity of the lipid bilayer, occasioned by a large perturbation of the membrane\'s structure, was accomplished by incorporating the extract of T. gracilis. This was observed independently of the cells\' growth phase. &$946;-carotene and licopene interfere in the lipid bilayer structure, lowering the hydrodynamic diameter of large unilamellar vesicles, an effect not previously reported in literature. This reduces the temperature were the phase transition initiates, broadens the transition gap, lowers the calorific capacity and enthalpy values, consequently, modifying the transition cooperation. Only β-carotene induces a higher fluidity of the lipid system and a faster NO permeation trough the membrane, which suggests that it may modify physical properties of the membrane.

The ecology and photo-acclimation mechanisms of microalgae belonging to the class Raphidophyceae were studied, both in nature and in culture. Particularly the work was focused on: Fibrocapsa japonica atypical occurrence offshore, in a cyclonic eddy in the eastern Alboran Sea (Western Mediterranean Sea), and Heterosigma akashiwo photosynthetic parameter (alpha, beta and Pmax) co-variation during experiments under sinusoidal and continuous light regime, and nitrogen starvation, which were conducted at the Laboratoire d’Oceanographie, Observatoire Oceanologique, Villefranche-sur-mer, Unviersitè Pierre et Marie Curie, CNRS, France.

With the significant potential of microalgae as a major biofuel source of the future, a considerable scientific attention is attracted towards the field of biotechnology and bioprocess engineering. Nevertheless the current photobioreactor (PBR) design methods are still too empirical. With this work I would like to promote the idea of designing a production system, such as a PBR, completely \emph{in silico}, thus allowing for the in silico optimization and optimal control determination. The thesis deals with the PBR modeling and simulation. It addresses two crucial issues in the current state-of-the-art PBR modeling. The first issue relevant to the deficiency of the currently available models - the incorrect or insufficient treatment of either the transport process modeling, the reaction modeling or the coupling between these two models. A correct treatment of both the transport and the reaction phenomena is proposed in the thesis - in the form of a unified modeling framework consisting of three interconnected parts - (i) the state system, (ii) the fluid-dynamic model and (iii) optimal control determination. The proposed model structure allows prediction of the PBR performance with respect to the modelled PBR size, geometry, operating conditions or a particular microalgae strain. The proposed unified modeling approach is applied to the case of the Couette-Taylor photobioreactor (CTBR) where it is used for the optimal control solution. The PBR represents a complex multiscale problem and especially in the case of the production scale systems, the associated computational costs are paramount. This is the second crucial issue addressed in the thesis. With respect to the computational complexity, the fluid dynamics simulation is the most costly part of the PBR simulation. To model the fluid flow with the classical CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) methods inside a production scale PBR leads to an enormous grid size. This usually requires a parallel implementation of the solver but in the parallelization of the classical methods lies another relevant issue - that of the amount of data the individual nodes must interchange with each other. The thesis addresses the performance relevant issues by proposing and evaluation alternative approaches to the fluid flow simulation. These approaches are more suitable to the parallel implementation than the classical methods because of their rather local character in comparison to the classical methods - namely the Lattice Boltzmann Method (LBM) for fluid flow, which is the primary focus of the thesis in this regard and alternatively also the discrete random walk based method (DRW). As the outcome of the thesis I have developed and validated a new Lagrangian general modeling approach to the transport and reaction processes in PBR - a framework based on the Lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) and the model of the Photosynthetic Factory (PSF) that models correctly the transport and reaction processes and their coupling. Further I have implemented a software prototype based on the proposed modeling approach and validated this prototype on the case of the Coutte-Taylor PBR. I have also demonstrated that the modeling approach has a significant potential from the computational costs point of view by implementing and validating the software prototype on the parallel architecture of CUDA (Compute Unified Device Architecture). The current parallel implementation is approximately 20 times faster than the unparallized one and decreases thus significantly the iteration cycle of the PBR design process.

碩士
國立雲林科技大學
環境與安全衛生工程系
103
The technology of microbial fuel cells (MFCs) is a technology of degrading organics in waste water using microbes to generate chemical energy which is then transformed into electricity. Although MFCs seem advantageous from the theoretical perspective, in practice, the development cost is quite high as their electricity generation efficiency is influenced by factors such as internal resistance, electrode material and quality, and form of waste water. This study developed a membrane bioreactor-photosynthetic microbial fuel cell, (MBR-PMFC) system, resolving the issue of traditional MFCs of the positive electrode run-through area being too small and reducing the usage of catalyst. This study increased the anode run-through area by covering the anode with the cathode chamber. Moreover, in the cathode, nannochloropsis oculata was used to generate dissolved oxygen to reduce catalyst added. The focus of this study is on the discussions regarding the system electricity generation efficiency with different electrode materials (graphite and platinum), anode and cathode volume ratios (1:7, 1:5, and 1:3), and anode and cathode area ratios (1:1, 1:2, and 2:1). The research findings are summarized below: (1) With the volume ratio of 1:7 and the electrode area ratio of 1:1, the PDmax with the modified carbon fiber cloth electrodes was 27 mW/m2, 152% higher than the PDmax with unmodified carbon fiber cloth electrodes, which was 11 mW/m2. And the anode COD removal rate was also 40% higher in comparison. (2) With the Pt carbon fiber cloth electrodes and the electrode area ratio of 1:1, the PDmax with the volume ratio of 1:3 was 171 mW/m2, 529% higher than the PDmax with original volume ratio of 1:3, which was 27 mW/m2. Moreover, it was 10% higher compared with the PDmax with the volume ratio of 1:7 and that with the volume ratio of 1:5. (3) With the Pt carbon fiber cloth electrodes and the volume ratio of 1:3, the PDmax with the electrode area ratio of 1:1 was 171 mW/m2, 45% higher than the PDmax with the electrode area ratio of 1:2 and that with the electrode area ratio of 2:1, while the improvement in the COD removal rate was not significant in comparison.

碩士
國立臺灣海洋大學
環境生物與漁業科學學系
107
Studied on the optimum primary productivity, photosynthesis rate and chlorophyll-a contents of Sarcodia suieae , which was cultured in different illuminance (45.50, 99.09, 126.96 and 164.22 μmol photon /m2/s), temperature (15, 20 and 30 °C) and NaHCO3 concentrations (0, 0.1 and 0.2 mol/L) for 6 hours. In ambient of 0.2 M NaHCO3 concentration, the maximum value of the optimum primary productivity had significant increased with increasing of illuminance (p<0.05); on the contrary, In the 0 M NaHCO3 concentration, the maximum value of the optimum primary productivity had significant decreased with increasing of illuminance (p<0.05). The optimum primary productivity of S. suieae was also had significant difference among different temperature environments. The maximum value of the optimum primary productivity had significant decreased with increasing of illuminance at 15 and 20°C (p<0.05), the maximum value of the optimum primary productivity had significant increased with increasing of illuminance at 30°C (p<0.05). With different illuminances, there was no significant difference in chlorophyll-a contents of S. suieae (p>0.05). The photosynthesis rate of S. suieae had significant difference in various environmental factors. Overall, the photosynthesis rate is the most stable at 20°C in various illuminance and NaHCO3 concentration environment. However, the photosynthesis rate has the highest maximum value at 30 °C ,0.2 M NaHCO3 concentration and 164.22 μmol photon /m2/s in this experiment.

Brassinosteroids are plant hormones which are also known for their pleiotropic effects on plants exposed to various biotic and abiotic stress factors. The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of 10-8 M 24-epibrassinolide in Zea mays L. and Vicia faba L., grown under conditions of drought stress (6, 10, 14, 18 days) with an emphasis on different answer to their drought sensitive and resistant genotypes. Net photosynthetic rate (PN) and transpiration rate (E), stomatal conductance (gs), osmotic potential (ψs), proline (Pro) and malondialdehyde (MDA) content and membrane injury index (MI) were measured in stressed plants and plants grown under controlled conditions. The most important factor influencing these parameters was drought, which led to a gradual decrease of PN, E, gs, ψs and increase of Pro, MDA a MI. The effect of 24-epibrassinolid was significant rather exceptionally and in these cases, more pronounced response was observed in drought stressed plants compared with plants grown under controlled conditions. Plants showed intraspecific variability in their reactions, which in sensitive and tolerant genotypes were not clear and differed depending on the studied parameters and conditions of plant cultivation.

Knowledge of physiological and morfological mechanisms which are related to drought tolerance is essential in breeding high-yielding and tolerant plants, which would not suffer unfavourable environmental conditions. Drought stress can lead to oxidative damage which causes serious disorders in physiological and biochemical processes in plant cells. Antioxidants can reduce those negative effects. Morphological (dry mass of shoot and roots, height of shoot, number of leaves), physiological (photosynthetic efficiency, pigment content, relative water content-RWC) and antioxidative (catalase-CAT, ascorbate peroxidase-APX, proline) parameters were evaluated in this study using two genotypes of Vicia faba L. differing in drought susceptibility. Drought resistant (Merkur) and sensitive (Piešťanský) genotypes were exposed to 10 days of drought. Activity of CAT and APX of stressed plants rather decreased. Proline content oscillated and no evident trend or significant differences were observed in relation to drought stress. Decrease in RWC was expressed more at susceptible plants, electron-transport chain activity and pigment content were not affected much by drought. Drought susceptible genotype expressed more serious negative effects of drought in morphological parameters, however this genotype was a bit bigger than...

The aims of this work were 1) to assess whether sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) genotypes originating from the India can be grown and analyzed in the climatic conditions of central Europe and 2) to find out the utilization potential of selected non- destructive and destructive methods based mostly on the chlorophyll a fluorescence measurements and the determination of photosynthetic pigments' content for the differentiation of sorghum genotypes based on their presumed drought tolerance. Field experiments made during 2 years compared 15 genotypes of this species (2 stay-green parental lines, 2 senescent parental lines and 11 introgression lines with stay-green loci), 2 of these genotypes were further analyzed in greenhouse conditions where the water deficit was induced by a cessation of watering for 12 days. The field-grown plants showed some differences between individual genotypes in all measured parameters; however, for the majority of the genotypes these differences were not statistically significant. The stay-green parental genotype B35 differred the most from the other ones in both field seasons, but the other stay-green genotypes usually did not differ from the senescent genotypes. No significant differences between both greenhouse-tested genotypes (presumably contrasting in their...

Magister Scientiae (Biodiversity and Conservation Biology)
Wheat is a key global commodity in terms of acreage and tradeable value and as a staple in household diets. Many factors including biotic stress conditions have detrimental effects on global wheat production and yield. The increasing prevalence of biotic stress inflicted by fungal species such as Fusarium has significantly reduced yield and quality of cereal crops thus, threatening sustainable agriculture and food security. Interactions between wheat and Fusarium spp. such as Fusarium proliferatum triggers the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) to levels toxic to the plant thus leading to oxidative damage and ultimate cellular death. In order to maintain redox homeostasis, plants rely on ROS-scavenging antioxidants (enzymatic and non-enzymatic) to control ROS molecules to levels less toxic to plants. This study investigated the impact of F. proliferatum on the physio-biochemical responses of two wheat cultivars (SST 015 and SST 088). Changes in seed germination, growth, biomass, chlorophyll and mineral contents were monitored. Furthermore, changes in ROS accumulation and antioxidant enzyme activity was measured in the shoots of both wheat cultivars.