Differences in the accumulation of phosphorus between vegetative cells and heterocysts in the cyanobacterium Nodularia spumigena.

The cyanobacterium Nodularia spumigena is a species that frequently forms blooms in the Baltic Sea. Accumulation of the vital nutrient phosphorus (P) apparently plays an important role in the ability of this and other cyanobacteria to grow even when dissolved inorganic phosphorus is depleted. However, until now, this has not been studied in N.