Seasonal variations in the metabolic activity of cells of Fucus vesiculosus Linnaeus, 1753 (Phaeophyta: Fucales) from the Barents Sea

Abstract

The cellular metabolic activity was studied in the brown alga Fucus vesiculosus from the Barents Sea. Several phases of activity of physiological processes in cells of this alga during a 1-year period have been identified. This study shows that the onset and duration of the three main phases of seasonal development of alga, viz., the resting phase, growth, and the accumulation of reserve nutrients, can be determined based on the level and dynamics of the cellular metabolic activity. Each development phase in F. vesiculosus is characterized by a specific rhythm of the daily metabolic activity of cells.