The use of HPLC pigment analysis to study microphytobenthos communities

The use of HPLC pigment analysis has become a widespread tool for investigating the taxonomic composition of phytoplankton. However, for micropytobenthos, due to the complexity of these communities and the accumulation of vegetal senescent material, the application of this technique presents further problems. Samples of unialgal cultures from representative taxa of microphytobenthos and samples of surface sediment from intertidal mudflats were collected, extracted in methanol and analyzed for photosynthetic pigments in a HPLC system, with a fluorimeter and a photodiode array detector. A total of 11 chlorophylline pigments and 19 carotenoids were identified. Absorbance chromatograms from cultures and natural populations are displayed. Pigment ratios from five species belonging to different taxonomic classes are compared. Pigment composition and diversity of intertidal muddy sites are discussed; the increase of degraded compounds of chlorophyll a and carotenoids along a vertical profile of 5 cm is shown on different sediment types. (C) 2003 Editions scientifiques et medicales Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved.