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Effects of zinc toxicity on the nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium Anabaena sphaerica—ultastructural, physiological and biochemical analyses

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Abstract

The current study describes the mechanisms of zinc toxicity in the cyanobacterium Anabaena sphaerica after eight days treatment with 10 mg L−1 ZnCl2. The application of zinc not only showed elevated accumulation of the metal inside the cells but also exhibited devastating impacts on the cell numbers, morphology, and ultrastructure of A. sphaerica. The effects of zinc on the pigments contents, oxygen evolution rate, Fv/Fm, electron transport rate, and carbohydrate content were also evaluated in A. sphaerica. Moreover, zinc adversely affected nutrient uptake and the cellular energy budget in the test cyanobacterium which in turn hampered heterocyst development and nitrogen fixation. Alongside, the cyanobacterium experienced zinc-mediated non-competitive inhibition of glutamine synthetase activity, curtailed synthesis of amino acids and proteins. Furthermore, drastically reduced total lipid and increased unsaturated lipid contents were also the prominent characteristics of zinc stressed A. sphaerica. Most importantly, zinc stress caused severe damages to the protein, lipid, and DNA by triggering hydrogen peroxide generation and accumulation of oxidized glutathione. Therefore, excess zinc is highly toxic to the cyanobacterium A. sphaerica, and the mechanisms of its toxicity followed a cascade of events including oxidative stress mediated geopardisation of growth and ultrastructure, metabolic derangements, and macromolecular damages.

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All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this published article [and its supplementary information files].

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Acknowledgements

We are thankful to the Head, Department of Botany, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India for providing laboratory facilities and Indian Council of Agricultural Research—AMAAS Network project for providing financial support.

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  1. Department of Botany, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, 221005, India

    Sindhunath Chakraborty & Arun Kumar Mishra

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  1. Sindhunath Chakraborty
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  2. Arun Kumar Mishra
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SC and AKM designed the project, whereas experimentation, visualization, writing original draft, and conceptualization have been done by SC. Supervision of the project, acquisition of fund, review, and editing of original draft has been done by AKM.

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Correspondence to Arun Kumar Mishra.

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Chakraborty, S., Mishra, A.K. Effects of zinc toxicity on the nitrogen-fixing cyanobacterium Anabaena sphaerica—ultastructural, physiological and biochemical analyses. Environ Sci Pollut Res 28, 33292–33306 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-12882-1

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