Haematococcus pluvialis Flotow is used in the aquaculture, pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries. The aim of this study was to compare the effect of various stress media and high light intensities on astaxanthin accumulation. The experimental design was achieved by four different stress media and two different light intensities for 14 days of induction period. The astaxanthin concentrations of 29.62 mg g(-1) and 30.07 mg g(-1) were obtained in distilled water with CO(2) and N-free medium, respectively, with no significant difference between them at 546 micromol photons m(-2)s(-1). Because of the morphological changes of H. pluvialis, microscopic observation was considered during the induction period to facilitate the selection of stress medium. It was clear that the rate of astaxanthin accumulation was much faster in distilled water with the addition of CO(2). The main point is that, this medium is more economical than others, especially for the large-scale productions.
Marine organisms constitute approximately one-half of the total global biodiversity, being rich reservoirs of structurally diverse biofunctional components. The potential of cyanobacteria, micro- and macroalgae as sources of antimicrobial, antitumoral, anti-inflammatory, and anticoagulant compounds has been reported extensively. Nonetheless, biological activities of marine fauna and flora of the Aegean Sea have remained poorly studied when in comparison to other areas of the Mediterranean Sea. In this study, we screened the antimicrobial, antifouling, anti-inflammatory and anticancer potential of in total 98 specimens collected from the Aegean Sea. Ethanol extract of diatom Amphora cf capitellata showed the most promising antimicrobial results against Candida albicans while the extract of diatom Nitzschia communis showed effective results against Gram-positive bacterium, S. aureus. Extracts from the red alga Laurencia papillosa and from three Cystoseira species exhibited selective antiproliferative activity against cancer cell lines and an extract from the brown alga Dilophus fasciola showed the highest anti-inflammatory activity as measured in primary microglial and astrocyte cell cultures as well as by the reduction of proinflammatory cytokines. In summary, our study demonstrates that the Aegean Sea is a rich source of species that possess interesting potential for developing industrial applications.
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