Epiphytic phytoplankton in response to divergent air pollutants from urban and commercial zones of Chennai District, Tamil Nadu, India: A case study towards phytoplankton based Air Quality Index.

Microalgae are an effective source of bioindicators to screen any changes of the natural ecosystem in the environment. With the increase in air pollution due to different potential sources, pollution monitoring stations are deployed across the nation with sophisticated analytical methodologies. However, phytoplankton can also serve as an indicator of air pollution as they possess the ability to absorb particulate contaminants.