Copper Immobilization in Fouling Diatoms

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Abstract
Observations on the colonization of antifouling paints by diatoms demonstrated that a small number of tolerant species are usually involved. These species colonize as the toxin leaching rate declines following the initial peak values and remain even after the onset of macrofouling. Colonization of toxic environments necessitates some form of resistance, whether intra or extracellular. Tolerant Amphora and Navicula species colonizing cuprous oxide paints and exposed to increasing concentrations of CuCl2 were processed for transmission electron microscopy and analyzed system. The ultrastructural effects coupled with intracellular Cu localization were investigated. Ultrastructural examination revealed that Cu had entered the cells and was located in either polyphosphate or Cu bodies. The polyphosphate bodies, spherical in shape and normally located within the cell vacuoles contained high concentrations of phosphorus in association with Ca and in some, Cu. The copper bodies, irregular in outline and usually associated with membranes, contained high concentrations of S with Cu and Ca. These bodies are important structures in maintaining low concentrations of free Cu within the cells and thus reducing its toxic effects.