Inter-population differences in inherited copper tolerance involve photosynthetic adaptation and exclusion mechanisms in Fucus serratus

Hanne D Nielsen; Colin Brownlee; Susana M Coelho; Murray T Brown

doi:10.1046/j.1469-8137.2003.00864.x

Inter-population differences in inherited copper tolerance involve photosynthetic adaptation and exclusion mechanisms in Fucus serratus

New Phytol. 2003 Oct;160(1):157-165. doi: 10.1046/j.1469-8137.2003.00864.x.

Authors

Hanne D Nielsen^{1

2

3}, Colin Brownlee¹, Susana M Coelho², Murray T Brown²

Affiliations

¹ The Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, Citadel Hill, Plymouth PL1 2PB, UK.
² School of Biological Sciences, University of Plymouth, Drake Circus, Plymouth PL4 8AA, UK.
³ Present address: Dept. Life Sciences and Chemistry, Roskilde University, PO Box 260, 4000 Roskilde, Denmark.

PMID: 33873539
DOI: 10.1046/j.1469-8137.2003.00864.x

Abstract

• A comparative study of copper (Cu) toxicity and tolerance in three populations of Fucus serratus was conducted by examining Cu²⁺ effects on various physiological parameters. • Chlorophyll fluorescence, oxygen evolution, copper content, and relative growth rate of embryos and adults were measured on Cu²⁺ -exposed material. • Algae naturally exposed to elevated total Cu concentration (Cu_T ), were more Cu²⁺ resistant than those from clean sites, as indicated by higher embryo and adult growth rates and lower copper contents. The Cu²⁺ tolerance of F. serratus is at least partly inherited and relies partly on metal exclusion. • There were inhibitory effects of Cu²⁺ on oxygen exchange rates in both tolerant and non-tolerant algae. By contrast to sensitive algae, the maximum efficiency of photosystem II (F_v /F_m ), maximum fluorescence (F_m ) and zero fluorescence (F_o ) of resistant algae were unaffected by Cu²⁺ , whereas decreased quantum yield (ΦPSII) and increased nonphotochemical quenching (NPQ) were most pronounced in resistant algae. Inhibitory effects of Cu²⁺ on ΦPSII may result in the excitation energy being dissipated through xanthophyll-dependent quenching mechanisms in tolerant algae. In nontolerant algae, lower energy dissipation may result in chlorophyll degradation.

Keywords: Cu2+; Fucus serratus (Phaeophyta); algae; chlorophyll fluorescence; heavy metal; hyper-accumulation; photosynthesis; tolerance.