The potential of "mirage effect" spectroscopy in water pollution: Effect of pollutants on photosynthesis activity.

A new methodology has been developed in the field of photosynthesis to study energy storage in different organelles and leaves. The methodology is based on the "mirage effect", in which a refractive index gradient is induced in a fluid in contact with the sample. The authors demonstrated that this methodology is a very sensitive tool for the recording of action spectra of photosynthetic pigments, both in vivo (leaves, algae and chloroplasts) and in model systems. The photosynthetic energy storage, which is an indicator of photosynthetic activity, has also been measured. The energy storage is sensitive to the action of aqueous pollutants (DCMU, phenol). The applications of the methodology in the field of environmental studies are discussed.