This study aims to investigate the effects of different concentrations of cadmium (Cd) (0-800 μM) on the growth, the photosynthetic performance, and the biochemical parameters of the Chlorophyta Picocystis sp. during 3 and 9 days. Results showed that this exposure did not inhibit the Picocystis growth during the first 3 days of treatment. Growth inhibition did not exceed 53%, which was recorded at high Cd concentrations (800 μM) after nine exposure days. Moreover, no inhibitory effect on the Picocystis sp. photosynthesis has been recorded during the three exposure days regardless the Cd concentrations. Lipid peroxidation was significantly increased at high Cd concentrations (500 and 800 μM) by 40 and 80%, respectively. Furthermore, the highest Cd concentration enhanced the thiol protein content, indicating no consequent protein oxidation. The exposure of Picocystis to Cd stimulated the antioxidant activities of catalase and ascorbate peroxidase. These results showed that Picocystis sp. has an impressive tolerance to Cd stress.
The Chlorophyta Picocystis sp. isolated from a Tunisian household sewage pond appears promising for effective removal of Bisphenol A (BPA). Efficient and cost-effective technology for contaminants remediation relies on a tradeoff between several parameters such as removal efficiency, micro-organism growth, and its tolerance to contaminant toxicity. This article demonstrates the optimum conditions achieving the highest removal rates and the minimal growth inhibition in batch cul-tures of Picocystis using response surface methodology. A central composite face-centered (CCF) design was used to determine the effects on removal and growth inhibition of four operating parameters: temperature, inoculum cell density, light intensity, and initial BPA concentration. Results showed that the maximal BPA removal was 91.36%, reached the optimal culture conditions of 30.7 C, 25 Â 10 5 cells ml À1 inoculum density, 80.6 mmol photons m À2 s À1 light intensity, and initial BPA concentration of 10 mg l À1 . Various substrate inhibition models were used to fit the experimental data, and robustness analysis highlighted the Tessier model as more efficient to account for the interaction between Picocystis and BPA and predict removal efficiency. These results revealed how Picocystis respond to BPA contamination and suggest that optimization of experimental conditions can be effectively used to maximize BPA removal in the treat-ment process.
The effects and the removal efficiency of bisphenol A (BPA) on two extremophilic Chlorophyta strains, an alkaliphilic Picocystis and a thermophilic Graesiella, were assessed. BPA was shown to inhibit the growth and photosynthesis of both species, but to a greater extent for Graesiella. The growth IC 50 (4 days) was 32 mg L −1 for Graesiella andhigherthan75mgL −1 for Picocystis. Oxidative stress was induced in both strains when exposed to increasing BPA concentrations, as evidenced by increased malondialdehyde content. BPA exposure also resulted in an over-expression of antioxidant activities (ascorbate peroxidase, glutathione S-transferase and catalase) in Picocystis whereas they were repressed in Graesiella. Both species exhibited high BPA removal efficiency, reaching 72% for Picocystis and 52.6% for Graesiella at 25 mg L −1 . BPA removal was mostly attributed to biodegradation for both species. Overall, according to its extended tolerance and its removal capacity, Picocystis appeared to be a promising species for the BPA bioremediation even at high contamination levels.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.