Chlorophyll fluorescence—a practical guide

Abstract

Chlorophyll fluorescence analysis has become one of the most powerful and widely used techniques available to plant physiologists and ecophysiologists. This review aims to provide an introduction for the novice into the methodology and applications of chlorophyll fluorescence. After a brief introduction into the theoretical background of the technique, the methodology and some of the technical pitfalls that can be encountered are explained. A selection of examples is then used to illustrate the types of information that fluorescence can provide.

Environmental tolerances of rare and common mangroves along light and salinity gradients

“…In association with the final set of height measurements, we assayed light-adapted photosynthetic yield (i.e., quantum efficiency of Photosystem II photochemistry) on a subsample of plants from each treatment as an index of plant stress (Genty et al 1989;Maxwell and Johnson 2000;Baker and Oxborough 2004). This index (Φ PSII ) is calculated as (F m − F t )/F m , where F m and F t are the maximal and steady-state fluorescence yields, respectively (following the notation of Maxwell and Johnson 2000). It measures the proportion of light absorbed by PSII chlorophyll that is used in photochemistry.…”

“…Quantum yield was generally higher at the lowest light level for all four species, ranging close to 0.8 in seawater for all four species. A value of ~0.83 is considered optimal photosynthetic performance for most plant species (Maxwell and Johnson 2000). The quantum yield of Lumnitzera showed no significant response to salinity, regardless of light level (Fig.…”

Effect of Sequential Isoproturon Pulse Exposure on Scenedesmus vacuolatus

“…This instrument assesses the effective quantum yield of energy conversion at PSII reaction centers by applying a pulsemodulated light to light-adapted algae (Maxwell and Johnson 2000). The chlorophyll fluorescence F and the maximum fluorescence Fm' were measured using the instruments default settings.…”

Effects on the Photosynthetic Activity of Algae after Exposure to Various Organic and Inorganic Pollutants: Review

“…Based on the fact that a proportion of the absorbed light energy in PSII photochemistry cannot be used to drive electron transport and is dissipated via non-radiative energy as heat or chlorophyll fluorescence emission associated with the PSII complex [2,[11][12][13][14][15], information about changes in the efficiency of photosynthesis can be acquired by measuring the yield of Chl-α-fluorescence [2,16]. Chl-α-fluorescence is a physical signal defined as the radiative energy evolved from de-exciting Chl-α-molecules (λ = 690 nm for PSII, λ = 740 nm for PSI) [17] that has been used as a rapid, non-intrusive, and highly sensitive bioindicator of algal stress in response to different chemicals in recent years [2,18,19].…”

“…Numerous articles provide the efficiency of several Chl-α-fluorescence parameters that have been employed in assessing the effects of toxicants or their combinations on microalgae and macroalgae (seaweeds). Detailed definitions of certain Chl-α-fluorescence parameters along with their photosynthetic importance are available in the literature [16,[20][21][22]. The most commonly used Chl-α-fluorescence key parameters that are becoming recognized as valid sublethal indicators of photosystem stress and have been used to examine the sub-lethal toxicity of toxicants toward a variety of microalgae are maximum quantum yield (F v /F m ), effective PSII quantum yield (Φ PSII, or Φ m or ΔF/F m' ), operational PSII quantum yield (Φ' PSII or Φ' m ), proportion of open PSII (qP), non-photochemical quenching (NPQ), and electron transport rate (ETR) [2,[23][24][25][26].…”