A strain of thermophilic blue-green algae isolated from Matsue hot spings, Mastigocladus laminosus-MS, exhibited both photosystem I and photosystem II activities in its intact state : Electron acceptors such as methyl viologen or 2, 6-dichlorophenol indophenol were photo-biochemically reduced by the intact algal cells. Moreover, these algal cells accumulate photosynthetic ATP in the culture medium in the presence of exogenous ADP plus orthophosphate, unique circumstances as compared to the general experience with blue-green algae such as Plectonema sp. and Anacystis sp. or green algae as Chlorella sp. Such an ATP synthesis was remarkably affected by some buffer reagents.
These results suggest that photo-biochemical reduction or phosphorylation of surrounding substances by intact organisms should be noted as a possible factor of environmental dynamics.