Synthesis of Lipid During Photosynthesis by Phytoplankton of the Southern Ocean

Assimilation of carbon-14 labeled bicarbonate into photosynthetic products was measured at four stations in the Southern Ocean. Phytoplankton populations incorporated as much as 80 percent of the fixed carbon into lipid under conditions of low temperatures (–0.2° to –1.8°C) and low light intensities...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science
Main Authors: Smith, Andrew E., Morris, Ian
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) 1980
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1126/science.207.4427.197
https://www.science.org/doi/pdf/10.1126/science.207.4427.197
Description
Summary:Assimilation of carbon-14 labeled bicarbonate into photosynthetic products was measured at four stations in the Southern Ocean. Phytoplankton populations incorporated as much as 80 percent of the fixed carbon into lipid under conditions of low temperatures (–0.2° to –1.8°C) and low light intensities. At higher temperatures (+0.3° to +0.8°C) and higher light intensities, incorporation into lipid accounted for less than 20 percent of the fixed carbon, synthesis of polysaccharide and protein being more prominent.