Relationship between color and pigment production in two stone biofilm-forming cyanobacteria (Nostoc sp. PCC 9104 and Nostoc sp. PCC 9025)

Abstract

Previous studies have provided evidence that color measurements enable on site quantification of superficial biofilms, thereby avoiding the need for sampling. In the present study, the efficiency of color measurements to evaluate to what extent pigment production is affected by environmental parameters such as light intensity, combined nitrogen and nutrient availability, was tested with two cyanobacteria, Nostoc sp. strains PCC 9104 and PCC 9025, which form biofilms on stone. Both strains were acclimated, in aerated batch cultures for 2 weeks, to three different culture media: BG-11, BG-11₀, and BG-11₀/10 at either high or low light intensity. The content of chlorophyll a, carotenoids, and phycocyanins was measured throughout the experiment, together with variations in the color of the cyanobacteria, which were represented in the CIELAB color space. The results confirmed that the CIELAB color parameters are correlated with pigment content in such a way that variations in the latter are reflected as variations in color.

Keywords:

• color measurements
• pigments
• CIELAB color space
• environmental parameters
• cyanobacteria

Acknowledgments

The present study was financed by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Education (MEC, BIA2006-02233/BES-2007-16996). The authors thank Prof. Dr A. Otero for her discussion and constructive suggestions for this work.