The carbon nutrition of some algae: the inability to utilize glycollic acid for growth

Abstract

Thirty-nine strains of (mainly) supra-littoral algae were tested for their ability to utilize glycollic acid for chemotrophic and phototrophic growth at the' natural' pH of 8.c. In no instance was there convincing evidence that glycollate either supported growth in the dark or enhanced the growth rate in the light in the presence of carbon dioxide, although acetate performed one or both these functions in a number of the strains. It was concluded that glycollic acid was unlikely to serve as a significant carbon substrate in neutral or slightly alkaline habitats.