MORPHOLOGICAL EFFECTS AND ECOTOXICITY OF NONIONIC AND ANIONIC SURFACTANTS TO CLOSTERIUM EHRENBERGII USING AGZI (ALGAL GROWTH AND ZYGOSPORE INHIBITION) TEST

Kim, Sang-Gil; Matsui, Saburo; Park, Heekyung

Environmental Engineering Research 2000;5(2): 63-69.

Sang-Gil Kim¹^†, Saburo Matsui², and Heekyung Park³

¹Environmental Management Division, Hyundai Institute of Eco-Management, Seoul 110-793, Korea
²Research Center for Environmental Quality Control, Kyoto University, Japan
³Department of Civil Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Taejon 305-701, Korea

Corresponding Author: Sang-Gil Kim ,

Received: February 11, 2000; Accepted: April 10, 2000.

ABSTRACT

This study was aimed to evaluate the morphological effects and ecotoxicity to Closterium ehrenbergii using AGZI test for nonionic and anionic surfactants. The AGZI test is made of two tests: first is growth inhibition (Gl) test, a growth inhibition test with asexual reproduction, second zygospore inhibition (ZI) test is a normal zygospore ratio inhibition test with sexual reproduction. The Gl test is able to measure toxic effects during cell division processes. The Zl test is able to measure toxic effects during normal zygospore formation processes. In Gl test, the 1 mg/L of nonionic surfactant (polyethoxylate oleate sorbitan: S-l) might have induced inhibition of separation processes of vegetative cell division stage. On the other hand, the 0.01 mg/L of anionic surfactant (sodium dodecyl sulfate: S-4) might have induced inhibition of cytoplasm division processes of vegetative cell. In Zl test, the 0.01 mg'L of nonionic surfactant (polyetho¬xylate oleate sorbitan: S-l) inhibited formation of normal zygospores, and then many of zygospores were seen to be broken and/or abnormal. The inhibition of sexual cell division in zygospore processes, which results in vegetative cells are seen in 0.01 mg'L of anionic surfactant (sodium dodecyl sulfate: S-4). An anionic surfactant (sodium dodecyl sulfate) was more toxic than nonionic surfactants (polyethylene oxide oleate sorbitan, polyethylene oxide oleate glyceryl and polyethylene oxide oleate castor oil). The ecotoxicity of anionic surfactant (sodium dodecyl sulfate: 0.1 mg/L) is c.a.100% lethal effects in AGZI test. The results of anionic surfactant indicated that the AGZI test might be a useful bioassay tool for monitoring and assessing environmental samples. The AGZI test using Closierium ehrenbergii was the most sensitive ecotoxicological test of other aquatic organisms (e.g., alga, rotifer, daphnia and fish) including suggested OECD algal species.