Morphological types of gas vesicles

ŠMARDA, Jan and David ŠMAJS. Morphological types of gas vesicles. Algological Studies. 1996, vol. 83, p. 485-503.

Basic information

• Original name: Morphological types of gas vesicles
• Authors: ŠMARDA, Jan and David ŠMAJS.
• Edition: Algological Studies, 1996.

Other information

• Original language: English
• Type of outcome: Article in a journal
• Country of publisher: United States of America
• Confidentiality degree: is not subject to a state or trade secret
• Organization unit: Faculty of Medicine

Abstract

By electron-microscopic analysis of cells of 7 planktic species (four genera) of cyanobacteria living at sea water- and fresh water-surfaces, three distinct types of gas vesicles in their aerotopes could be distinguished. To minimize the error due to some variability of gas vesicle diameters at direct measurement, vesicles per 0.1 ľm2 of the crosssection of a vesicle bundle (aerotope) were counted. Type 1 vesicle arrays (13-14 vesicles per 0.1 ľm2) were found in Anabaena sp. and Nodularia sp. from Baltic Sea. Type 2 vesicle arrays (16-18 vesicles per 0.1 ľm2) were found Nodularia baltica and Nodularia spumigena from Baltic Sea and in Planktothrix agardhii from a Moravian fresh water reservoir. Type 3 vesicle arrays (23-24 vesicles per 0.1 ľm2) were found in Microcystis cf. aeruginosa from two Moravian water basins and in Nodularia litorea from the Baltic Sea. Each of the types could be further divided into two subtypes according to vesicle shape and array. Obviously, the morphological type of gas vesicles is neither species, nor genus or family specific, but all strains of the same species make use of one definite type of gas vesicles, determined by their genome. (The same type may be adopted by various species.) Thus, the type of gas vesicles appears a valuable hereditary diacritical marker for cyanobacterial taxonomy.The study will be extended to a broader spectrum of planktic cyanobacteria.