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Mangrove estuaries are claimed to be productive and important breeding grounds for fishery resources. The role of particulate organic matter (POM), especially derived from decomposed litter detritus, is well documented in mangrove estuaries. However, being a primary producer, phytoplankton may play a significant role, which has not been well discussed, in governing the productivity of mangrove estuaries. Based on relevant published literature, this paper focuses on the role of phytoplankton in mangrove estuaries in the tropical coastal region and their interdependency. Analysis reveals that there are two-way interactions between phytoplankton and mangrove estuaries. The POM enriched water in mangrove estuaries acts as an ideal medium for phytoplankton succession. Simultaneously, diversified phytoplankton assemblages play a significant role in the food web of the estuarine mangrove ecosystem. Biomass and diversity of phytoplankton are influenced by nutrient and environmental parameters in mangrove estuaries and, concurrently, phytoplankton play a significant role in fish diversity and primary production in the same system. This review reveals that the inconsistent relationships between mangroves and coastal production could probably be due to the influence of seasonal changes. This paper unveils the latent potential and role of phytoplankton in tropical mangrove estuaries, which could be a source of thought for future research in this arena.

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Background: Nutritional fact study has prime importance to make the species edible and commercially viable to the consumers. Proximate chemical composition and amino acid profile were investigated to understand the nutritional value and protein quality of an edible algae Caulerpa racemosa. Methods: Samples were collected randomly by hand from the intertidal zone of the subtropical coastal Island St. Martin's Island from February 2013 to May 2014. Samples were preserved using standard methods for chemical analysis. Proximate composition was determined using standard methods, Kjeldahl method for protein, Soxhlet method for crude lipid, H 2 SO 4 (0.3 N) and NaOH (0.5 N) for dietary fibre, muffle furnace method for moisture content, ion-exchange chromatography for amino acid and statistical package used for validating the data. Results: The result of the study reveals that C. racemosa contains higher amount of proteins (19.72±0.77%), crude lipid (7.65±1.19%) and fibre (11.51±1.32%) compared to other green and brown algae. The higher concentration of aspartic acid (12.7±0.2%) and glutamic acid (9.2±0.7%) were observed in C. racemosa, while histidine (2.6±0.7%), methionine (1.4±0.4%) and tyrosine (3.8±0.2%) were the limiting amino acids. Lysine (6.6±0.2%), leusine (6.9±0.6%), glycine (6.5±0.4%), arginine (6.4±0.3%), alanine (7.6±0.6%) and threonine (6.2±0.5%) were obtained at a higher percentage of total amino acids. Conclusion: This study suggests that C. racemosa could be potentially used as a nutritious and functional food item for human consumption. Further studies on this edible species should be focused on fatty acid composition, vitamins, non-starch polysaccharide constituents, trace elements and sensory perceptions in order to depict safer and versatile utilization. Keywords Caulerpa racemosa; Green seaweed; Proximate chemical composition [11]. In Bangladesh, total 137 species of seaweeds (e.g. green, brown and red algae) were recorded from the Saint Martin's Island, Chittagong coast, Cox's Bazar coast and Sundarban mangrove area, Khulna [13]. Among them, C. racemosa is very common edible green seaweeds and growing abundantly at St. Martin's Island [7]. Characteristically, C. racemosa (commonly known as sea grapes) is green algae, growing on the rocky or hard substratum of intertidal water [1,7].