Light microscopy (left), and fluorescence microscopy (right) images
of Scenedesmus sp. strain WC-1 cultivated in Bold’s basal
medium at an initial pH of 8.7. Photo credit: Robert Gardner and
Huyen Bui, Montana State University.
Micrographs detailing morphology changes of WC-1 during growth and
pH-induced TAG accumulation (shown by Nile red fluorescence -
yellow). Photo credit: Robert Gardner and Huyen Bui, Montana State
University.
Scenedesmus sp. strain WC-1 was isolated from an alkaline stream (pH 8.7 and temperature of 31.7°C) in Yellowstone National Park, USA under permit # YELL-2011-SCI-5480. This strain was first described in Gardner et al. (2011). It can grow to high culture densities in high pH/alkalinity conditions and accumulate triacylglycerols up to 16.8% of its biomass (Gardner et al. 2011, 2013).
Most WC-1 cells are ovate with pointy ends. However, the cell morphology can change depending on growth stage and the medium pH (Gardner et al. 2011).
References:
- Gardner RD, Peters P, Peyton BM, Cooksey KE (2011). Medium pH and nitrate concentration effects on accumulation of triacylglycerol in two members of the Chlorophyta. J Appl Phycol 23: 1005–1016. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-010-9633-4
- Gardner RD, Lohman EJ, Cooksey KE, Gerlach R, Peyton BM (2013). Cellular cycling, carbon utilization, and photosynthetic oxygen production during bicarbonate-induced triacylglycerol accumulation in a Scenedesmus sp. Energies 6: 6060-6076. https://doi.org/10.3390/en6116060
