Distribution and germination of viable diatom resting stage cells in sediments of the East China Sea

The abundance and temporal patterns of viable diatom resting stage cells in sediments of the East China Sea in 2006 have been investigated. The abundance of viable resting stages was enumerated with the most probable number (MPN) technique. Overall, 25 diatom species (including varieties) belonging to 16 genera were detected. Viable resting stage cells were common, on the order of 10³ to 10⁶ cells/g dry mass. The abundant taxa included Skeletonema marina, S. dohrnii, Chaetoceros curvisetus and Thalassiosira spp., with Skeletonema accounting for 83.3% of the cell. The effects of temperature (10, 15, 20, 25 °C), salinity (20, 25, 30, 35 psu) and light intensity (0, 300, 4 000, 8 000 lux) on the germination of resting stages in sediment samples were also determined. The results showed that light intensity had a significant positive effect on the germination of diatom resting stage cells (p <0.01) and that diatoms could not germinate in darkness. Temperature and salinity had no noticeable effects on the germination. The present study suggests that there are abundant diatom resting cells in sediments of the East China Sea, which could serve as a "seed bank" in the phytoplankton population succession and contribute to the initiation of algal blooms.