Respiration in an autotrophic and a heterotrophic organism: comparison of four different methods

Abstract

In the following research we studiedthe differences between the respiratory behavior of an autotrophic and a heterotrophic organism while at the same time comparingdifferent respiration measurement techniques. The respiration methodologies were the Winkler method, oxygen electrodes, oxygenoptodes and the kinetic assay for the respiratoryelectron transport system (ETS), methods that allow the determination of both physiological and enzymatic respiration. The organisms chosen for these experiments were a coastal crustacean, the mysid Leptomysis lingvura, and a coastal macroalgae, the chlorophyte, Ulvarigida.This work will briefly introduce the ecology of L. lingvuraand U. rigidaas well as explain the interest and importance of respiration and its measurement. It will continue with the description of each method used for a better understanding of their strengths and weaknesses. Then the results will be discussed and finally used to draw conclusions on the comparability of these methods and on the differences between the mysidand Ulvarespiration and their possible physiological and biochemical causes.