Ecological Systems and Devices Annotation << Back FULLERENE AS A PROTECTOR AGAINST THE TOXIC EFFECT OF POTASSIUM BICHROMATE ON ALGAE GROWTH G.A. Dallakyan The effect of fullerene 5 mg/l and potassium bichromate at a concentration of 3 mg/l on the culture of green chlorococcal microalgae Scenedesmus quadricauda (Turp.) Bréb. In the presence of fullerene, stimulation of culture growth up to 15 days was observed in comparison with the growth of the control culture in pure medium. When exposed to potassium bichromate, the growth of the culture was inhibited throughout the entire 20-day experiment. It is shown that the combined effect of potassium dichromate and fullerene on the population of Scenedesmus guadricauda reduces the toxic effect of potassium dichromate. In the presence of fullerene, the proportion of living cells in culture was at the control level. Under the combined action of potassium dichromate and fullerene, the proportion of living cells was 98–99 % throughout the entire experiment. In the presence of potassium bichromate, only 92 %, while the cell size became smaller compared to the control. In all cases, both in the presence of fullerene and in the simultaneous presence of fullerene and potassium bichromate in the medium, algal cells grow better, while the efficiency of photosynthesis, the number of cells and the proportion of living cells become higher than in the presence of only potassium dichromate in the medium. Apparently, fullerene in the culture medium acts, on the one hand, as an antioxidant of free radicals, and on the other hand, it changes the redox state of the medium. This contributes to the stabilization of crop growth. Keywords: Scenedesmus guadricauda, potassium bichromate, fullerene, cell viability, photosynthesis efficiency. DOI: 10.25791/esip.9.2023.1400 Pp. 64-69.