Synergistic allelochemicals from a freshwater cyanobacterium.

ABSTRACT: The ability of cyanobacteria to produce complex secondary metabolites with potent biological activities has gathered considerable attention due to their potential therapeutic and agrochemical applications. However, the precise physiological or ecological roles played by a majority of these metabolites have remained elusive. Several studies have shown that cyanobacteria are able to interfere with other organisms in their communities through the release of compounds into the surrounding medium, a phenomenon usually referred to as allelopathy. Exudates from the freshwater cyanobacterium Oscillatoria sp. had previously been shown to inhibit the green microalga Chlorella vulgaris. In this study, we observed that maximal allelopathic activity is highest in early growth stages of the cyanobacteri

SUBMITTER: Leao PN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2895120 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature