Analysis of photosynthetic pigments and chlorophyll fluorescence characteristics of different strains of Porphyra yezoensis

The levels of photosynthetic pigments and chlorophyll fluorescence of Porphyra yezoensis strains selected from high-light environments were investigated. Sutong and Sulian strains originated from the same high-light environment but were selected from different sites on the Yellow Sea coast of Jiangsu Province, China. In January (a low temperature period), the Sulian strain and the WT (a widely cultivated strain) had higher levels of chlorophyll a, phycoerythrin, phycocyanin, and allophycocyanin, and higher actual photochemical efficiency of PSII (Delta F/F (m)') than the Sutong strain. This indicated that Sulian and the WT may have better adaptation to low temperature. In March (an optimal temperature period), Sutong had higher levels of photosynthetic pigments and higher Delta F/F (m)' than the WT and Sulian strains. This suggested that Sutong had higher light use efficiency at optimal temperatures and that most energy absorbed by PSII was used for photosynthetic electron transport. The differing areas of origin of these strains may have resulted in these differences in temperature adaptation.