TITLE:
The Toxic Effects of Crude Oil in Some Freshwater Cyanobacteria
AUTHORS:
Abdul Hameed M. Jawad Al Obaidy, Muwafaq H. M. Lami
KEYWORDS:
Toxicity, Crude Oil, Cyanobacteria, Batch Culture, Bioassay, Biomonitoring
JOURNAL NAME:
Journal of Environmental Protection,
Vol.5 No.5,
April
18,
2014
ABSTRACT: Toxicity
effect of the Iraqi crude oil on the growth of two Cyanobacteria strains Microcystis
flos-aquae (Wittr.) Kircher (unicellular) and Nostoc carneum Agardh
(filamentous) was studied basing on it is biomass expressed as chlorophyll-a
(μg/ml). Growth rate and doubling time of the cells were also calculated
accordingly in present or absent of the crude oil. Also, Microscopical
examination was observed to detect the morphological changes. Both species
appeared different responses towards oil toxic influences with different
concentrations and time of exposure. Growth was decreased gradually with Microcystis with addition of 10, 30, 50 and 70 mg/l of the crude oil, slightly toxic
effects were observed with Nostoc in comparison to the control.
Different significant correlations (P ≤ 0.05) were observed between growth of
the cyanobacteria and the oil concentrations. Furthermore, results demonstrated
that Microcystis was considered to be more sensitive than Nostoc towards crude oil concentrations.