Page 6 - Caruso_Zaccone_2000
P. 6
956 G. CARUSO AND R. ZACCONE
Table 2 The Adriatic Sea (Prisma 2 project). Pearson correlation coef®cients found in the surface and along the water column between
LAP activity and some physico-chemical and microbiological parameters in front of the Po delta (Northern area) and near Ancona
(Southern area)
Northern area
June 96 February 97 June 97 February 98
LAP vs: 0 m Column 0 m Column 0 m Column 0 m Column
Temperature 072 050** ÿ 079 ÿ 035 067 061** ÿ 079 ÿ 065**
Salinity ÿ 082* ÿ 075** ÿ 086* ÿ 042* ÿ 097** ÿ 094** ÿ 099** ÿ 095**
Viable heterotrophic bacteria 016 028 083* 037 064 063** 079 049**
Chlorophyll a 049** 068** 083** 087**
POC 030 055** 094** n.d.
n 6 n 30 n 6 n 30 n 6 n 30 n 6 n 30
Southern area
June 96 February 97 June 97 February 98
LAP vs: 0 m Column 0 m Column 0 m Column 0 m Column
Temperature 015 013 ÿ 084 ÿ 090** 060 039 ÿ 092** ÿ 093**
Salinity ÿ 078* ÿ 048** ÿ 076 ÿ 085** ÿ 054 ÿ 069** 057 ÿ 089**
Viable heterotrophic bacteria 047 048** 099** 090** 016 028 074 071**
Chlorophyll a 051** 071** 084** 099**
POC 024 093** 091** n.d.
n 7 n 36 n 5 n 23 n 6 n 30 n 6 n 27
*Signi®cant value at P < 005; **signi®cant value at P < 001; n.d. not determined.
density, which was homogeneously distributed and ranged Brackish environments
3
1
from 40 10 (June 97, northern area) to 509 10 cfu
ml ÿ1 (February 97, southern area). Temperature had a Faro Lake. Faro Lake is a brackish lake connected through
negative in¯uence on LAP in cold periods and a positive canals to the Tyrrhenian Sea. The shallow depth (25 m)
effect in warm periods, but the environmental variable and the massive growth of photosynthetic sulphur bacteria
affecting the enzyme activity more consistently appeared to are the cause of frequent `red water' phenomena, which
be salinity, being signi®cantly inversely related to LAP occur in this environment particularly in spring (Truper
throughout the study period and particularly (at a higher and Genovese 1968). In February 1995, one station located
degree of correlation) in the most diluted waters of area A. at the central point of the lake was sampled at the surface
Aminopeptidase was also always correlated with POC and and at 10 and 20 m. Vmax values ranged from 19 to 27 mg
ÿ1
ÿ1
chlorophyll a contents. C l h , with the highest concentrations at the surface.
At the same depth, temperature and viable heterotrophic
3
bacteria reached their maxima (1439 C and 147 10 cfu
Straits of Messina. Surface samples were collected in July ml ), respectively. Lower aminopeptidase levels were
ÿ1
1996 from six stations located between the Sicilian and measured in the deepest layers, coinciding with the lowest
Calabrian coasts, in conditions of current ¯owing from the bacterial counts (459 10 cfu ml ). The r Pearson coef-
ÿ1
2
Tyrrhenian towards the Ionian Sea (called `scendente', ®cient between bacterial heterotrophic abundance and
Brandolini et al. 1980). Values of activity were between activity data (r 089) showed a signi®cant correlation
099 (station Torre Cavallo, Calabrian coast) and 2591 mg between these two parameters.
C l ÿ1 h ÿ1 (station Ganzirri, in front of the Sicilian coast).
2
Viable heterotrophic bacteria ranged from 380 10 to
3
703 10 cfu ml ÿ1 and were signi®cantly positively corre- Oliveri-Tindari ponds. The lagoon area of Oliveri-Tindari
lated with the activity values (r 096). is a small brackish system located along the Tyrrhenian
= 2000 The Society for Applied Microbiology, Journal of Applied Microbiology, 89, 951ÿ959
