Optical density, chlorophyll, carotenoids and oil contents were the highest at 10 mM malonate; higher concentrations were inhibitory (with few exceptions). Rates of respiratory oxygen uptake also decreased at malonate concentrations above 10 mM. Dry mass was, however, continually increasing by increased malonate concentrations. Free glycerol contents have not been generally altered by malonate concentrations, with few exceptions. The above-mentioned observations were consistent at all of the studied species (local isolates of Chlorococcum humicola, Scenedesmus dimorphus, Scenedesmus acutiformis and Scenedesmus quadricauda), except in the dry mass of Chlamydomonas (SAG isolate (Samlung für Algen kulturen). The inhibitory action on respiration by malonate concentration above 10 mM was accompanied by lipoid decrease. Thus, the hypothesis of competitive inhibition of succinate dehydrogenase (SD) by malonate, with increased acetyl CoA and subsequently triglycerides, is ruled out at malonate concentration above 10 mM. Increased oil yield at ≤ 10 mM malonate resulted from increased culture cell density along with increased oil content per cell. Doubling oil and dry mass contents in one litre (10 mM) of the studied algae roughly costs 0.23€.

An on-line HPLC–ESI–MS–MS method has been developed for determination of glutathione and phytochelatins (PC) in plant tissues. For sample pretreatment, dithiothreitol (DTT) must be added at the very beginning, as an anti-oxidant. Optimization of instrumental conditions i.e. composition of HPLC mobile phase, ionization efficiency of the electrospray interface, and MS–MS detection in the multiple ion-monitoring mode, are the central aspects of this work. A polystyrene-packed column was found to be superior to a standard silica-packed reversed-phase column. A concave quadratic gradient of ammonium formate buffer and acetonitrile was found to be optimum. The limits of quantitation were 0.2 μmol kg−1 plant tissue for glutathione and PC. The method has been applied to analysis of tissue samples from Vicia faba grown in Cd-containing nutrient solutions.

Abstract Main conclusion Arsenic, a non-nutrient metalloid is toxic to plants but many details on the physiology of plant adaptation to arsenic stress are not well understood. This work provides new insights about the role of sulfur assimilation in arsenate uptake, growth and arsenic tolerance. Research reported here indicates that two high affinity sulfate transporters in Arabidopsis thaliana are not involved in root uptake of arsenate. Further this study revealed that sulfate status influenced thiol levels, elemental nutrients

Sewage water is a complex mixture in terms of chemical, biological, and physical characteristics. It is part of the most renewable wastewaters, while it should not be, at least in arid and semiarid countries. A trogonal problem of aridity, increasing population, and mismanagement of natural resources exists in many areas of the world, predominantly in the southern hemisphere and politically referred to as developing countries. Increasing population per se imposes the adoption of new strategies for handling wastewater

Sewage water is a complex mixture in terms of chemical, biological, and physical characteristics. It is part of the most renewable wastewaters, while it should not be, at least in arid and semiarid countries. A trogonal problem of aridity, increasing population, and mismanagement of natural resources exists in many areas of the world, predominantly in the southern hemisphere and politically referred to as developing countries. Increasing population per se imposes the adoption of new strategies for handling wastewater

Sewage water is a complex mixture in terms of chemical, biological, and physical characteristics. It is part of the most renewable wastewaters, while it should not be, at least in arid and semiarid countries. A trogonal problem of aridity, increasing population, and mismanagement of natural resources exists in many areas of the world, predominantly in the southern hemisphere and politically referred to as developing countries. Increasing population per se imposes the adoption of new strategies for handling wastewater

Sewage water is a complex mixture in terms of chemical, biological, and physical characteristics. It is part of the most renewable wastewaters, while it should not be, at least in arid and semiarid countries. A trogonal problem of aridity, increasing population, and mismanagement of natural resources exists in many areas of the world, predominantly in the southern hemisphere and politically referred to as developing countries. Increasing population per se imposes the adoption of new strategies for handling wastewater

Abstract Translocation of cadmium (Cd) in the tissues of Vicia faba, the water content in biomass, the biomass production, and the glutathione and phytochelatin tissue concentrations were studied and correlated with the plant sensitivity and/or tolerance to Cd. The total concentrations of Cd were determined by inductively coupled plasma/mass spectrometry (ICP-MS), the concentrations of glutathione (GSH) and phytochelatins 2 and 3 (PC2 and PC3) were determined by on-line high performance liquid chromatography