Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations and symbols
- Part I Chlorophylls and carotenoids
- Part II Methodology guidance
- Part III Water-soluble ‘pigments’
- Part IV Selected pigment applications in oceanography
- 11 Pigments and photoacclimation processes
- 12 Pigment-based measurements of phytoplankton rates
- 13 In vivo bio-optical properties of phytoplankton pigments
- 14 Optical monitoring of phytoplankton bloom pigment signatures
- Part V Future perspectives
- Part VI Aids for practical laboratory work
- Part VII Data sheets aiding identification of phytoplankton carotenoids and chlorophylls
- Index
- Plate Section
- References
11 - Pigments and photoacclimation processes
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 March 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations and symbols
- Part I Chlorophylls and carotenoids
- Part II Methodology guidance
- Part III Water-soluble ‘pigments’
- Part IV Selected pigment applications in oceanography
- 11 Pigments and photoacclimation processes
- 12 Pigment-based measurements of phytoplankton rates
- 13 In vivo bio-optical properties of phytoplankton pigments
- 14 Optical monitoring of phytoplankton bloom pigment signatures
- Part V Future perspectives
- Part VI Aids for practical laboratory work
- Part VII Data sheets aiding identification of phytoplankton carotenoids and chlorophylls
- Index
- Plate Section
- References
Summary
Introduction
This chapter reviews the nature of pigment variations in phytoplankton in response to changes in light regime (irradiance, spectral composition and day length). These changes belonging to processes called acclimation and/or adaptation maximize the evolutionary fitness of a species, within the constraints set by the environmental conditions (Raven and Geider, 2003). In general, adaptation indicates long-term evolutionary outcome based on the genes present in a given species (genetic adaptation) while acclimation denotes adjustments in response to variation in key environmental variables (physiological acclimation).
Photo-acclimation corresponds to a mosaic of processes involving many cellular components and occurring over a broad range of time scales, from seconds to days. These processes, covering many physiological, biochemical, biophysical and biological changes, allow the optimization of cell activities, such as photosynthesis, respiration, growth and division, when faced with changing irradiance (e.g. Herzig and Dubinsky, 1993; Anning et al., 2000; Raven and Geider, 2003). This is an important issue in phytoplankton ecology because of the fluctuating light environment experienced by pelagic algae, related to daylight variations together with the exponential decrease of light and the vertical – active or passive – movements of algae along the water column.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Phytoplankton PigmentsCharacterization, Chemotaxonomy and Applications in Oceanography, pp. 445 - 471Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2011
References
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