Physiological characterization and molecular profiling of toxic and non-toxic isolates of cyanobacterium Microcystis

Our investigation aimed to utilize physiological attributes and molecular tools for distinguishing the toxic strain of Microcystis from other non toxic strains, belonging to the same genus. Physiological characterization of five Microcystis isolates indicated that the toxic strain (M1) exhibited significantly higher pigment accumulation (phycocyanin: 54.20 microg ml(-1); allophycocyanin: 18.2 microg ml(-1)) and sugar content (74.25 microg ml(-1)), which may be providing a competitive advantage for successful colonization and proliferation. Profiling using repeat sequence primers (STRR, Hip) was helpful in distinguishing different strains (M1-M5) and HIP TG profile was unique to M1. SDS-PAGE profile of the five strains indicated the presence of a unique band (25kDa) in M1. The combined use of SDS-PAGE and HipTG profiles can help in providing distinct fingerprint for the toxic strain, which can be useful in its identification.