A study on the filtering activity has been carried out on reared specimens of the demosponge Spongia officinalis var. adriatica coming from an off-shore farm displaced off the Apulian coast (Ionian Sea). The experience was carried out under laboratory conditions, by using natural seawater collected from the sponge environment. The study demonstrates a high efficiency of the sponge in removing bacteria. Bacterial concentration significantly decreases in presence of the sponge, with a marked drop after 2 h from the start of the experience. The maximum clearance rate was 210ml h-1 g-1 DW at 60 min. Retention efficiency reached the highest value of 61% at 120 min. The bacterial density removed by the S. officinalis filtering activity was 12.371.8 cells ml/1 corresponding to a biomass of about 11.7 micro g Cl/1. The sponge fed preferentially large- and medium-size bacteria, whereas the small ones are fed after the removal of the largest size categories. The results obtained suggest that S. offcinalis is a suitable species for marine environmental bioremediation.

Filtering activity of Spongia officinalis var. adriatica (Schmidt) (Porifera, Demospongiae) on bacterioplankton: implications for bioremediation of polluted seawater

LONGO, CATERINA;MERCURIO M;NONNIS MARZANO, CARLOTTA;CORRIERO, Giuseppe
2006-01-01

Abstract

A study on the filtering activity has been carried out on reared specimens of the demosponge Spongia officinalis var. adriatica coming from an off-shore farm displaced off the Apulian coast (Ionian Sea). The experience was carried out under laboratory conditions, by using natural seawater collected from the sponge environment. The study demonstrates a high efficiency of the sponge in removing bacteria. Bacterial concentration significantly decreases in presence of the sponge, with a marked drop after 2 h from the start of the experience. The maximum clearance rate was 210ml h-1 g-1 DW at 60 min. Retention efficiency reached the highest value of 61% at 120 min. The bacterial density removed by the S. officinalis filtering activity was 12.371.8 cells ml/1 corresponding to a biomass of about 11.7 micro g Cl/1. The sponge fed preferentially large- and medium-size bacteria, whereas the small ones are fed after the removal of the largest size categories. The results obtained suggest that S. offcinalis is a suitable species for marine environmental bioremediation.
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11586/128251
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