Can Rose Bengal resilience be used as a marker for photosynthetic resilience of Nannochloropsis oceanica strains in excess light environments

Singlet oxygen (1O2) is an interesting candidate for study due to the widely held opinion that it plays a key role in photoinhibition of photo system II (PSII). Many studies have been conducted to elucidate the exact role of singlet oxygen (1O2) in photo-damage/repair, photoprotection, oxidative protection, and signaling. However, few studies have addressed the potential role of singlet oxygen as a marker for resilience to excess light environments. In the present study, we focus on the question of whether singlet oxygen resilience correlates with a strain's robustness in excess light environments. In order to address this question, two Nannochloropsis oceanica mutant strains, RB2 and RB113, both selected for heightened resilience to Rose Bengal (RB), a singlet oxygen (1O2) photosensitizer, were characterized. This included the characterization of the photosynthetic apparatuses and specific growth rate in relation to photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) in the growth media.