The growth response of an estuarine diatom (Melosira nummuloides [dillw.] Ag.) to UV-B (290–320 nm) radiation

An increase in the transmission of solar radiation in the UV-B region (specifically, 290–320 nm) is expected to occur as a result of anthropogenic degradation of stratospheric ozone. The potential impact of increased levels of UV-B radiation upon the biosphere is of ecological concern. In a previous study a community of estuarine organisms received a daily exposure to a simulated solar spectrum enhanced in UV-B radiation for a period of six weeks. A dominant species of diatom growing at the surface of these communities was isolated and identified to beMelosira nummuloides. Short chains of this diatom were irradiated for a four-hour period on each of three consecutive days. Fluorescent sunlamps filtered by a 290 nm cut-off filter (0.13–0.50 mm cellulose acetate) or a 315 nm cut-off filter (0.13mm Mylar ‘S’) provided a range of fluence which closely approximated natural fluence levels. A least squares regression analysis of the number of cell divisions on the biologically weighted fluence indicated a significant depression in the growth of this species by radiation in the 290–320 nm waveband.