Metadata template for datasets of LO-Lettersarticles

Table 1. Description of the fields needed to describe the creation of your dataset.

Title of dataset / Algal particle abundance, biovolume, and size data from a 21-d cyanobacterial culture experiment with added microplastics
URL of dataset /
Abstract / We performed a laboratory experiment to investigate impacts of microplastics on cyanobacterial abundance, biovolume, and colony size over a 21-d period.
Keywords / Microplastics, body scrub, particle analysis, microbeads. body wash, fragments, plastic waste, plastic pollution, algae, cyanobacteria, phytoplankton, Anabaena, Dolichospermum, Microcystis, freshwater
Dataset lead author / Kiyoko Yokota
Position of data author / Assistant Professor of Biology, principle investigator
Address of data author / State University of New York College at Oneonta Biological Field Station
5858 Hwy 80, Cooperstown, NY 13326, USA
Email address of data author /
Primary contact person for dataset / Same as the data author
Position of primary contact person / Same as the data author
Address of primary contact person / Same as the data author
Email address of primary contact person / Same as the data author
Organization associated with the data / State University of New York College at Oneonta Biological Field Station
Usage Rights / Publicly available and free to use
Geographic region / Upstate New York (Central New York), USA
Geographic coverage / n/a (data collected in laboratory setting)
Temporal coverage - Begin date / June 2015
Temporal coverage - End date / June 2015
General study design / Laboratory study where cyanobacterial cultures (Dolichospermum and Microcystis) were grown with or without added microplastics harvested from a body wash product.
Methods description / Laboratory batch cultures of Dolichospermum and Microcystis were maintained for 21 d with a 2 2 factorial design (2 levels of algal taxa and 2 levels of treatment: microplastics absent vs. present) with 5 replicates per treatment.
Laboratory, field, or other analytical methods / For the culture experiment we filled 20 Erlenmeyer flasks with 75 mL of Algal Stock COMBO medium (Kilham et al. 1998), and inoculated 10 flasks with 1 mL of Dolichospermum flosaquae (UTEX 1444) culture and the remaining 10 with 1 mL of Microcystis aeruginosa (UTEX LB2386) culture, both of which had been maintained in Algal Stock COMBO for two months. For each species 5 mg of the Product A microplastics were added to 5 of the 10 flasks at the start of the 21-d experiment. The microplastic concentration in these cultures was 5 mg / 75 mL = 66.7 mg L-1. Both the inoculum and the experimental cultures were maintained under the following condition: on an orbital shaker at 90 rpm; day: night cycle of 12 h at 23 °C : 12 h at 20 °C; daytime light level of ca. 70 μmol s-1 m-2. We performed particle analyses on FlowCam VS with a 4 x objective lens and a 300 µm flow cell. Samples from extra flasks that were not inoculated with algae, one with 5 mg of microplastics and the other without, were used as negative controls. Experimental samples were diluted as needed to achieve particles per unit image (PPUI) of 1.07-1.63 for each run under the auto-triggering mode at a flow rate of 0.2 mL min-1 with a camera rate of 14 fps. Dark pixels were selected for particle size determination at the default threshold of 18. Statistical analyses were performed on SPSS ver. 23 (IBM).
Quality control / The particle analyzer was thoroughly cleaned between samples to reduce cross-contamination. Particle per unit image (PPUI) was monitored for each run to be within the range of 1.0-1.6. Data were checked for outliers and unexpected biases; particle sizes and shapes were also checked under light microscopy.
Additional information / n/a

Table 2. Description of the variables (i.e., columns) in the dataset in sufficient detail for another user to understand and use the data. If there are 10 variables (i.e., columns) in the dataset, then there should be 10 rows in this column that describe each column.

Column name / Definition / Units
Flask # / ID # for each culture flask / n/a
Day / Days of experiment / Days
Rep / Replicate ID# within a treatment / n/a
Species / Species of culture. MA = Microcystis; AF = Dolichospermum; ASCOMBO = blank / n/a
Trt / Inoc = inoculum used to start the experimental cultures; Ctrl = control; +MP = microplastic addition / n/a
Particles ml-1 / Particle concentration: number of particles per ml of culture / Particles ml-1
Mean diameter (μm ESD) / Mean equivalent spherical diameter (ESD) of particles in microns / μm ESD
Mean volume (μm3 ESD) / mean particle volume calculated from ESD in cubic microns / μm3 ESD
Median diameter (μm ESD) / median equivalent spherical diameter (ESD) of particles in microns / μm ESD
Median volume (μm3 ESD) / median particle volume calculated from ESD in cubic microns / μm3 ESD
Total particulate volume (μm3 per ml sample) / sum of volumes of all particles per 1 ml sample, calculated from ESD, in cubic microns / μm3 ml-1

Metadata form for LO-Letters10/2015 1