Biogeochemical Cycles

Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle

 The growth of all organisms depends on
the availability of mineral nutrients, and
none is more important then nitrogen, which
is required in large amounts as an essential
component of peptides, proteins, enzymes,
chlorophylls, energy-transfer molecules
(ATP, ADP), genetic materials (RNA, DNA),
and other cellular constituents.
Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
 Nitrogen is present in all the four different
spheres of the Earth: the lithosphere
contains about 98% of the global N,
distributed among its different compartments
(soil and sediments of the crust and core).
 This N is not readily available to be cycled
in the near surface Earth environment.
 Some periodically enters the atmosphere
and hydrosphere through volcano eruptions,
primarily as ammonia (NH3) and nitrogen
(N2) gas.
 Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
 In atmosphere gas (N2) comprises more
than 78% of the volume.
 The hydrosphere and the biosphere
together contain relatively little N
compared with the other spheres.
 Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
 Nitrogen has many chemical forms, both
organic and inorganic, in the atmosphere,
biosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere.
 It occurs in the gas, liquid (dissolve in
water), and solid phases.
N can be associated with carbon and with
other elements other than carbon (inorganic
species).
Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
 Important inorganic species include nitrate
(NO3), nitrite (NO2), nitric acid (HNO3)
ammonium (NH4), ammonia (NH3), the gas
N2, nitrous oxide (N2O), nitric oxide (NO),
and nitrogen dioxide (NO2).
 Most organic N species in the four spheres
are biomolecules, such as proteins,
peptides, enzymes and genetic materials.
Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
The key processes linking the major pathways of
the nitrogen cycle are the following:
 N-fixation, that is, reduction of atmospheric N 2
into ammonia NH3
 Assimilation that is, conversion of (nitrate) NO3
and (ammonium) NH4 to organic nitrogen
 Ammonification, that is, conversion of organic
nitrogen to NH4
 Denitrification, that is, conversion of NO3 to
gaseous forms of nitrogen (NO, N2O, N2)
Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
 Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
 Though complex microbial relationships
regulate these processes
 We can assume that fixation,
ammonification, nitrification, and
denitrification are carried out almost
exclusively by bacteria
 Whereas algae play a main active role only
in nitrogen fixation and assimilation.
Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
 From an algal point of view:
 Atmospheric molecular nitrogen is converted by
prokaryotic algae (Cyanophyta) to compounds
such as ammonia (fixation, which are in part
directly converted into amino acid, proteins and
other nitrogen-containing cell constituents of the
fixators, and in part excreted into the open
environment.
 Eukaryotic algae, unable to perform fixation,
incorporate fixed nitrogen, either ammonium or
nitrate, into organic N compounds by assimilation.
Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
 When organic matter is degraded, organic
compounds are broken down into inorganic
compounds such as NH3 or NH4 and CO2
through the ammonification process.
 The resultant ammonium can be nitrified by
aerobic chemoautotrophic bacteria that use it as
electron donor in the respiration process.
 Cycle completed by denitrification carried out
usually by facultative anaerobic bacteria that
reduce nitrate used as electron acceptor in
respiration to nitrogen gas.
Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
 All life forms require nitrogen compounds the
most abundant protein of it (98%) is buried in the
rocks, therefore deep and unavailable, and the
rest of nitrogen, the gas (2%) can be utilized only
by very few organisms.
 This gas cannot be used by most organisms
because the triple bond between the two nitrogen
atoms makes the molecule almost inert.
Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
 In order for N2 to be used for growth this
gas must be “fixed” in the forms directly
accessible to most organisms, that is,
ammonia and nitrate ions.
Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
 A semitemporal separation of nitrogen fixation and
oxygenic photosynthesis combined with spatial
heterogeneity was the first oxygen-protective
mechanism developed by marine cyanobacteria
such as Trichodesmiun sp and Katagnymene sp.
 A full temporal separation, in some non-
heterocystous filamentous diazotrophs e.g.
Oscillatoria limosa and Plectonema boryanum.
 Other filamentous organisms, complete segregation
of N2 fixation and photosynthesis was achieved with
the cellular evolution of heterocystous cyanobacteria
e.g. Nostoc and Anabaena.
Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
Nostoc sp.
Nostoc colony

Trichodesmium sp.
Algae and the Nitrogen Cycle
 The non-heterocystous filamentous
cyanobacteria Trichodesmiun sp and
Katagnymene sp., unlike all other non-
heterocystous species fix nitrogen only
during the day.
Algae and the Silicon Cycle
 The Biogeochemical cycle of silicon does
not facilitate a high biospheric abundance
of the element, in fact silicon cycle differs
from the cycles of carbon, nitrogen, sulfur
and it is similar to phosphorous in that
there is no atmospheric reservoir.
Algae and the Silicon Cycle
 Silicification occurs in three clades of
photosynthetic heterokonts:
 Chrysophyceae
 Bacillariophyceae and
 Dinophyceae
Algae and the Silicon Cycle
 Diatoms being the world’s largest
contributors to biosilicification
 Because amorphous silica is an essential
component of the diatom cell wall, silicon
availability is a key factor in the regulation of
diatom growth in nature; in turn, the use of
silicon by diatoms dominates the
biogeochemical cycling of silicon in the sea.
 Algae and the Silicon Cycle
 Several thousand million years ago little if any of
the life on Earth was involved in the processing
of silicic acid to amorphous silica (SiO2 * H2O)
The concentration of silicic acid in the aqueous
environment was high
 Environment rich in silicic acid is indicated in the
fossil record by evidence of blue-green algae
Algae and the Silicon Cycle
 Algae and the Silicon Cycle
 Once the silica frustules have settled to the
bottom their silica enters the sedimentary cycle
whereupon it is unlike to reappear in the
biosphere for tens of millions of years
 Diatoms in sedimentary deposits of marine and
continental, origin belong to different geologic
ranges and physiographic environments
 Algae and the Silicon Cycle
 Aside from their role in the silicone cycle,
the diatoms have also attracted attention
because of their importance to export of
primary production to the ocean’s interior
Algae and the Silicon Cycle
 Algae and the Sulfur Cycle
 Sulfur is an essential element for
autotrophs and heterotrophs
 In reduced oxidation state: Nutrient sulfur
plays an important part in the structure
and function of proteins
 In fully oxidized state: sulfur exists as
sulfate and is the major cause of acidity in
both natural and polluted rainwater
 Algae and the Sulfur Cycle
 Sulfur cycle can be thought of as beginning with
the gas sulfur dioxide (SO2) or the particles of
sulfate (SO4) compounds in the air
 These compounds either fall out or are rained
out of the atmosphere
 Algae and plants take up some forms of these
compounds and incorporate them into their
tissues
 Algae and the Sulfur Cycle
 As nitrogen, these organic sulfur
compounds are returned to the land or
water after the algae and plants die or are
consumed by heterotrophs.
 Bacteria are important here as well
because they can transform the organic
sulfur to hydrogen sulfide gas (H2S).
 Algae and the Sulfur Cycle
 In oceans, certain phytoplankton can
produce a chemical that transforms
organic sulfur to sulfur dioxide (SO2) that
resides in the atmosphere
 These gases can re-enter the atmosphere,
water, and soil, and continue the cycle
 Algae and the Sulfur Cycle
 All living organisms require S as a minor
nutrient
 Roughly the same atom proportion as
phosphorus
 Sulfur is present in freshwater algae at a
ratio of about 1 S atom to 100 C atom and
the S content varies with species,
environmental conditions, and season
 Algae and the Sulfur Cycle
 Vascular plants, algae and bacteria have the
ability to take up, reduce, and assimilate
sulfate (SO4) into amino and convert SO4 into
ester sulfate compounds
 Sulfate is assimilated from the environment,
reduction inside the cell, and fixed into sulfur-
containing amino acid and other organic
compounds
Algae and the Oxygen/ Carbon
Cycle
 They are directly associated with
photosynthesis and respiration processes
 Oxygen constitutes about 21% of the
atmosphere, 85.8% of the ocean and
46.7% by volume of the Earth’s crust
 When CO2 released by the respiration of
algae, plants, bacteria and animals, more
bicarbonate and carbonate ion produce
CO2+H2O H2CO3 HCO3+H CO3+H HCO3 CO2+OH
 Algae and the Oxygen/ Carbon Cycle
 Some marine organisms combine calcium
with carbonate ions in the process of
calcification on manufacture calcareous
skeletal material
 After death, this skeletal material sinks and is
either dissolved, in which case CO2 is again
released into the water or it becomes buried
in sediments, in which case the bound CO2 is
removed from the carbon cycle
Algae and the Oxygen/ Carbon Cycle