Morphological and chemical aspects of <i>Chlorella pyrenoidosa, Dunaliella tertiolecta, Isochrysis galbana and Tetraselmis gracilis</i> microalgae

Abstract

This study evaluates the growth and chemical composition of the following marine microalgae: Dunaliella tertiolecta, Isochrysis galbana, and Tetraselmis gracilis and the chemical composition of Chlorella pyrenoidosa. Microalgae can produce a number of compounds of high commercial value for the industry, mainly for the food industry. The growth kinetics, cell volume, pigments, carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, and fatty acid and amino acid composition were evaluated. I. galbana had the largest number of cells per mL −1 (107), concentration of carotenoids (6.33 μg•mL −1), and carbohydrates (34.32%). D. tertiolecta and T. gracilis had the highest cell volume (560.6 and 592.7 μm 3 , respectively), the highest amount of total dry biomass. D. tertiolecta had the highest chlorophyll concentration (9.05 μg•mL −1), and C. pyrenoidosa had the highest protein (48.16%) and lipid (14.30%) content. The marine species D. Tertiolecta, I. galbana, and T. gracilis had high levels of monounsaturated fatty acids (C18:1 n9), and C. pyrenoidosa was high in polyunsaturated fatty acids (C18:2 n6 and C18:3 n3), indicating the present high nutritional value fatty acids. The microalgae studies showed a composition of amino acids that meet the nutritional requirements recommended by the FAO g•100 g −1 (FAO/WHO/UN, 1985) for adults and children (2-5 years), indicating that these proteins can be used in foods.

Growth Performance, Biochemical Composition and Nutrient Recovery Ability of Twelve Microalgae Consortia Isolated from Various Local Organic Wastes Grown on Nano-Filtered Pig Slurry

“…These data were mostly in line with the data reported for Chlorella sp. (g 100 g −1 crude protein) (n = 5), i.e., Arg (7.2 ± 0.9), Asp (9.7 ± 0.6), Glu (11 ± 1.5), Gly (6.3 ± 0.9), Ser (5.5 ± 1.3), Pro (4.6 ± 1.2), Cys (0.9 ± 0.7), Tyr (4.7 ± 1.7), Ala (8.6 ± 0.8), as NEAAs; Leu (8.2 ± 1), Lys (7.1 ± 1), Phe (5.2 ± 0.5), Met (1.4 ± 0.5), Trp (1.8 ± 0.9), Ile (3.6 ± 1.7), His (2.5 ± 1.3), Thr (5.2 ± 0.3) and Val (5.5 ± 1.3) as EAAs [37,48,[55][56][57]. The higher Arg, Asp and Glu contents found in this work might be the reason for lower EAA contents, i.e., 24.3 ± 2.8 g 100 g −1 crude protein: this value is comparable with average contents of EAAs in Chlorella sp.…”

Edible Microalgae and Their Bioactive Compounds in the Prevention and Treatment of Metabolic Alterations

“…Isochrysis galbana is a marine-based microalga pertaining to the family Isochrysidaceae within the phylum Haptophyta, which typically uses oil droplets for energy storage [10]. Isochrysis galbana is composed of 27% protein, 34% carbohydrates, and 11% fat [109]. It is a rich source of chlorophyll, carotenoids (fucoxanthin, β-carotene, diadinoxantin and diatoxantin), and chrysolaminarin (a polysaccharide made from glucose moieties linked by type β-1,3 and type β-1,6 glycosidic bonds) [109].…”

“…Isochrysis galbana is composed of 27% protein, 34% carbohydrates, and 11% fat [109]. It is a rich source of chlorophyll, carotenoids (fucoxanthin, β-carotene, diadinoxantin and diatoxantin), and chrysolaminarin (a polysaccharide made from glucose moieties linked by type β-1,3 and type β-1,6 glycosidic bonds) [109]. A total of 1.35% of the fat is alpha-linolenic acid and 37.1% is oleic acid (18:1 n-9), which is more than that present in soybean oil [109].…”

“…It is a rich source of chlorophyll, carotenoids (fucoxanthin, β-carotene, diadinoxantin and diatoxantin), and chrysolaminarin (a polysaccharide made from glucose moieties linked by type β-1,3 and type β-1,6 glycosidic bonds) [109]. A total of 1.35% of the fat is alpha-linolenic acid and 37.1% is oleic acid (18:1 n-9), which is more than that present in soybean oil [109]. According to other reports, the oleic acid content is lower (15%) and the DHA content is 9-13% of the total fatty acid content [110,111].…”

Microalgae Potential and Multiple Roles—Current Progress and Future Prospects—An Overview

“…Microalgae contain carbohydrates, a wide category encompassing sugars (monosaccharides) and their polymers (di-, oligo-, and polysaccharides), and they serve both structural and metabolic functions. The most abundant carbohydrates are mainly glucose (21%-87%), galactose (1%-20%), and mannose (2%-46%) and varying amounts (0%-17%) of arabinose, fucose, rhamnose, ribose, and xylose [11]. In algal cells, these carbohydrates are synthesized inside the chloroplast, whereas in the case of prokaryotes, carbohydrates are synthesized in the cytosol.…”