Microscope Assisted Uni‑algal isolation through Dilution (MAU‑D): a simple modified technique for tapping diverse cyanobacteria

Abstract

Cyanobacteria are oxygenic photosynthetic microorganisms known for their agricultural and industrial importance. Unavailability of e cient and fast isolation and purif cation methods of cyanobacteria has impeded our understanding of cyanobacterial diversity. A number of techniques for isolation and purif cation of cyanobacteria are available, but most of them are cumbersome as well as time-consuming. In the present study, we modif ed and validated a uni-algal isolation technique named as Microscope Assisted Uni-algal isolation through Dilution (MAU-D) which used dilution of mixed algal population on slide and isolation of single type of cyanobacterial cells using light microscope. Using this technique, we obtained 81 cyanobacterial isolates belonging to various species from 19 dif erent genera from soil and water samples collected from rice f elds of Uttar Pradesh, India. This technique also resulted in isolation of six distinct genera, viz., Cyanobacterium, Toxopsis, Desertif lum, Chroococcidiopsis, Halomicronema, and Alkalinema, which were previously not reported from rice f elds of India. Hence, the MAU-D technique presents a simple, comparatively fast method of isolation and purif cation of cyanobacteria which can help to isolate those cyanobacteria which are di cult to isolate through routine sub-culturing