Abstract
Chemical analyses of green vs. decayed (fully-necrotic) leaf tissues of Thalassia testudinum revealed significant differences in mean (± 1 S.D.) percent dry weight/wet weight, 12.1 ± 6.9% (green) vs. 23.1 ± 16.6% (decayed), and in mean molar C:N ratio, 19.0 ± 4.2 (green) vs. 39.2 ± 8.8 (decayed). Conversely, there was an insignificant difference in mean in mean soluble protein, 8.2 ± 1.1 mg/ml (green) vs. 6.8 ± 5.0 mg/ml (decayed). In an amino acid derivatization analysis using HPLC, we detected 12 amino acids; valine and serine were detected in decayed leaves but not in green leaves, while proline and methionine were detected in green leaves but not in decayed leaves.