No abstract

In the present study, carefully controlled pH ranges (7 and 9) were used to distinguish between the effects of un-ionized NH3 and the NH4 (+) ion. The objective was to find the effect of different total ammonia nitrogen concentrations and pH values on the carbon metabolism of Ceratophyllum demersum. The authors investigated the effects of ammonia on the nonstructural carbohydrate content in shoots of C. demersum. Ammonia treatment decreased the contents of nonstructural carbohydrate, soluble sugar, sucrose, fructose, and starch in leaves. Meanwhile, increasing the pH value exacerbated the decline of the C. demersum nonstructural carbohydrate content. In addition, the activity of invertase was increased during the experiment. These results suggest that ammonia severely inhibits plant growth by disturbing nonstructural carbohydrate content. It has been suggested that ammonia has toxic effects on C. demersum and that the higher the pH in water, the more obvious the physiological responses that C. demersum exhibits. The results of the present study can provide some reference for studying the living conditions of submersed macrophytes under the stress of NH3.

No abstract

The objective of the present study was to determine the effect of total ammonia N concentration and pH on N metabolism of Ceratophyllum demersum and to evaluate stress as a result of inorganic N enrichment in the water column on submerged macrophytes. Carefully controlled pH values distinguished between the effects of un-ionized NH3 and ionized NH4(+). The results showed that the most obvious consequence of ammonia addition was an overall increase in ammonia content and decrease in nitrate content in all tissues of fertilized plants. The activities of nitrate reductase and glutamine synthetase were inhibited by long-term ammonia addition. At the same time, ammonia addition significantly decreased soluble protein content and increased free amino acid content in all treatments. Another clear effect of ammonia addition was a decrease in carbon reserves. Therefore, the authors concluded that increased ammonia availability could affect plant survival and lead to a decline in C. demersum proliferation through a decrease in their carbon reserves. This interaction between N and C metabolism helps to explain changes in benthic vegetation as a result of steadily increasing coastal water eutrophication.