INFLUENCING FACTORS AND MECHANISMS ON COLONY FORMATION OF MICROCYSTIS: A REVIEW

Cyanobacterial blooms in lakes and reservoirs caused by eutrophication coming with a series of environmental and ecological problems. Colony formation of Microcystis and aggregation at the surface of water column is one of the most important factors of forming cyanobacterial blooms. Compared with single-cell, Microcystis colonies have higher tolerance ability to adverse conditions (ultraviolet radiation, high light, heavy metal and so on) and are more re-sistance to predation, virus and bacteria, and the potential mechanisms were discussed in this review article. We also reviewed the recent findings of affecting factors on phytoplankton colony formation including abiotic factors (nutrition, temperature, light, heavy metal, microcystin, and glyoxylic acid), and biotic factors (herbivore, bacteria, fish, and algae). We also made the prospect for future researches: (1) Synergistic effects of abiotic-biotic factors on algae morphology; (2) Influences of human activities on phytoplankton morphology and community structure; (3) Applications of the responses of phytoplankton morphology to submerged plants in future aquatic ecosystems; (4) The application of exopolysaccharide secretion by algae in future industrial production.