Role of initial cell density of algal bioassay of toxic chemicals.

A variety of toxicants such as, metal ions, pesticides, dyes, etc. are continuously being introduced anthropogenically in the environment and adversely affect to the biotic component of the ecosystem. Therefore, the assessment of negative effects of these toxicants is required. However, toxicity assessment anticipated by chemical analysis are extremely poor, therefore the application of the living systems for the same is an excellent approach. Concentration of toxicant as well as cell density both influenced the result of the algal toxicity assay. Here, Scenedesmus sp, a very fast growing green microalgae was selected for study the effects of initial cell densities on the toxicity of Cu(II), Cd(II), Zn(II), paraquat and 2,4-D. Results demonstrated concentration dependent decrease in biomass and specific growth rate of Scenedesmus sp. on exposure of abovesaid toxicants. Paraquat and 2,4-D emerged as extremely toxic to the test alga which reflected from the lowest EC value and very steep decline in biomass was evident with increasing concentration of paraquat and 2,4-D in the medium. Result also demonstrated that initial cell density is a very important parameter than specific growth rate for algal bioassay of various toxicants. Present study clearly illustrated that the use of smaller cell density is always recommended for assaying toxicity of chemicals in algal assays.