Outdoor cultivation of microalgae for carotenoid production: current state and perspectives

Abstract

Microalgae are a major natural source for a vast array of valuable compounds, including a diversity of pigments, for which these photosynthetic microorganisms represent an almost exclusive biological resource. Yellow, orange, and red carotenoids have an industrial use in food products and cosmetics as vitamin supplements and health food products and as feed additives for poultry, livestock, fish, and crustaceans. The growing worldwide market value of carotenoids is projected to reach over US$1,000 million by the end of the decade. The nutraceutical boom has also integrated carotenoids mainly on the claim of their proven antioxidant properties. Recently established benefits in human health open new uses for some carotenoids, especially lutein, an effective agent for the prevention and treatment of a variety of degenerative diseases. Consumers' demand for natural products favors development of pigments from biological sources, thus increasing opportunities for microalgae. The biotechnology of microalgae has gained considerable progress and relevance in recent decades, with carotenoid production representing one of its most successful domains. In this paper, we review the most relevant features of microalgal biotechnology related to the production of different carotenoids outdoors, with a main focus on beta-carotene from Dunaliella, astaxanthin from Haematococcus, and lutein from chlorophycean strains. We compare the current state of the corresponding production technologies, based on either open-pond systems or closed photobioreactors. The potential of scientific and technological advances for improvements in yield and reduction in production costs for carotenoids from microalgae is also discussed.

Biofuels from Microalgae

“…61 Microalgae have the capacity of producing a vast array of high-value bioactive compounds that can be used as pharmaceutical compounds, health foods, and natural pigments. 62,63 Some well-studied examples include acetylic acids, b-carotene, 57,64 vitamin B, 65 ketocarotenoid astaxanthin, 66 polyunsaturated fatty acids, 67,68 and lutein 54,69 (see Table 1). The economical feasibility of microalgal biofuel production should be significantly enhanced by a high-value coproduct strategy, which would, conceptually, involve sequentially the cultivation of microalgae in a microalgal farming facility (CO 2 mitigation), extracting bioreactive products from harvested algal biomass, thermal processing (pyrolysis, liquefaction, or gasification), extracting high-value chemicals from the resulting liquid, vapor, and/or solid phases, and reforming/ upgrading biofuels for different applications.…”

The Use of Carotene Materials as the Source of Red Color Pigmentation on Leopard Grouper Larvae (Plectropomus leopardus)

“…This indicates that carotene giving from different sources express different specific protein. Obviously these are related to the type and contain containing in carotene materials source (Johnson and Lewis, 1979;Del Campo and García-González, 2007). Protein is expression of gen, phenotype character as interaction result between genotype and environment factors (Brock et al, 1999).…”

Produção de biodiesel por transesterificação enzimática in situ em solvente orgânico a partir da biomassa de Desmodesmus sp.

“…Nas algas, os mesmos possuem atividade essencial na realização de fotossíntese, juntamente com a clorofila, mantendo a estrutura e funções de complexos fotossintéticos. Possuem ação antioxidante, protegendo estes micro-organismos contra o estresse oxidativo (DEL CAMPO et al, 2007). A Tabela 2 apresenta os teores de clorofilas e carotenoides da biomassa da microalga Desmodesmus sp.…”