Abstract
The production of microcystins from Microcystis aeruginosa was investigated in a P-limited continuous culture and a batch culture. The microcystin content of M aeruginosa was higher at a lower $\mu$, whereas the microcystin (MC)-producing rate was linearly proportional to $\mu$. The ratios of the MC-producing rate to the C-fixation rate were higher at a lower $\mu$. Consequently, increases in the microcystin content per dry weight along with the production of the more toxic form, MC-LR, were both observed under more P-limited conditions. The microcystin content of M. aeruginosa exhibited a high correlation with the total N content regardless of N-fixed or P-fixed culture. The microcystin concentration was investigated from spring to autumn in 1999 in the Daechung Reservoir, Korea. The dominant species in the algal blooming season was Microcystis. When the microcystin concentration exceeded about 100 ng $1^{-1}$ the ratio of particulate to dissolved total nitrogen (TN) or total phosphorus (TP) interestingly converged at a value of 0.6. The microcystin concentration was lower than 50 ng $1^{-1}$ at a particulate N:P ratio below 8, whereas the microcystin concentration varied quite substantially from 50 ng $1^{-1}$ to 250 ng $1^{-1}$ at a particulate N:P ratio> 8.