Dear colleagues and friends
I have encountered a problem with my Microcystis culture. I tried isolating its protein and centrifuging it to collect the biomass. But the biomass won't settle down even after centrifuging at 14,000 rpm for 15 mins. There were always cells floating on the top of the centrifuge tube (I have tried several tube sizes; 15 ml, 5 ml, and 1.5 ml, and several rpm speeds from 9,000 to 14,000). Microcystis may have a gas vesicle so it does not sink. Any ideas about collecting the biomass without breaking the cells?
Thanks
I have read of several techniques to "collapse" the gas vacuoles of cyanobacteria so they can settle. Have you tried ultrasonication? The simplest and crudest way would be to put your sample in a strong container and rubber stopper that can withstand several blows from a rubber mallet to the stopper.
Another issue you may need to look into is the extensive mucilage Microcystis cells exude when forming colonies.
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