Silicon uptake by algae with no known Si requirement. II. Strong pH dependence of uptake kinetic parameters in Phaeodactylum tricornutum (Bacillariophyceae)

Silicon uptake kinetics of the diatom Phaeodactylum tricornutum (Bohlin) were examined at pH 8.8 ± 0.1 and pH 9.1 ± 0.1. Uptake follows hyperbolic saturation kinetics at both pH's, but at the higher pH the half-saturation constant for uptake is 11.8 μM, as opposed to 54.8 μM at the lower pH. When the uptake rate is examined as a function of the calculated concentration of the monovalent conjugate base, SiO(OH)3−, the half-saturation constant for uptake is 6.6 μM at either pH.