• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.20 no.9
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• pp.1276-1282
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• 2010

In traditional mixotrophic cultures of microalgae, all the inorganic nutrients and organic carbon sources are supplied in the medium before inoculation. In this study, however, an alternative approach was adopted in Haematococcus pluvialis Flotow, a microalga capable of growing mixotrophically on sodium acetate (Na-Ac). First, the cells were grown under 75 ${\mu}Mol$ photons $m^{-2}s^{-1}$ phototrophically without Na-Ac until the stationary phase and then exposed to five different light regimes by the addition of Na-Ac (e.g., dark, 20, 40, 75, and 150 ${\mu}Mol$ photons $m^{-2}s^{-1}$). Dry weight (DW), pigments, and especially cell number in alternative mixotrophy (AM) were higher than traditional mixotrophy (TM). Cell number in AM almost doubled up from 21.7 to $42.9{\times}10^4$ cells/ml during 5-day exposure to Na-Ac, whereas the increase was only 1.2-fold in TM. Maximum cell density was reached in 75 ${\mu}Mol$ photons $m^{-2}s^{-1}$ among the light intensities tested. We propose that Na-Ac in TM of H. pluvialis can not be utilized as efficiently as in AM. With this respect, AM has several advantages against TM such as a much higher cell density in a batch culture period and minimized risk of contamination owing to the shorter exposure of cells to organic carbon sources. In consequence, this method may be used for other strains of the species, and even for the other microalgal species able to grow mixotrophically.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.80-85
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• 2017

Recently, microalgae which can produce high-value products have attracted increasing attention for biological conversion of $CO_2$. However, low photosynthetic efficiency and productivity have limited the practical use of microalgae. Thus, we developed microdroplet photobioreactor for the analysis of photoautotrophic growth of model alga, Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. $CO_2$ transfer rate was increased by integrating micropillar arrays and adjusting height of microchamber. These results were identified by change of cell growth rate and fluorescence intensity. Lastly, the photoautotrophic growth kinetics of C. reinhardtii in microdroplet photobioreactor were investigated under different $CO_2$ concentrations and light intensities for 96 hours. As a result, microdroplet photobioreactor was efficient platform for isolation and rapid evaluation of microalgal strains which have enhanced productivity of high-value products and growth performance.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.33 no.5
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• pp.475-481
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• 2000

The growth of the microalgal Spiulina platensis in a batch photobioreactor had been studied to determine the influence of temperature, light intensity, and culture medium on the growth and c-phycocyanin content of the biomass. The most favorable conditions for high biomass and c-phycocyanin production were as follows: light intensity of 3500 lux, temperature of $35^{\circ}C,\;NaHCO_3\;of\;1.0{\%}$ for pH control, $0.2{\~}0.3{\%}\;Na_2CO_3$ for carbon source, and $0.2{\~}0.3{\%}\;NaCO_3$ for nitrogen source. The c-phycocyanin and chlorophyll content on most favorable condition were about $11{\%},\;1.0{\%}$, respectively.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.25 no.2
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• pp.238-246
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• 2015

A unicellular red microalga was isolated from environmental freshwater in Korea, and its morphological, molecular, and biochemical properties were characterized. Morphological analysis revealed that the isolate was a unicellular biflagellated green microalga that formed a non-motile, thick-walled palmelloid or red aplanospore. To determine the taxonomical position of the isolate, its 18S rRNA and rbcL genes were sequenced and phylogenetic analysis was performed. We found that the isolate was clustered together with other related Haematococcus strains showing differences in the rbcL gene. Therefore, the isolated microalga was classified into the genus Haematococcus, and finally designated Haematococcus sp. KORDI03. The microalga could be cultivated in various culture media under a broad range of pH and temperature conditions. Compositions of the microalgal cellular components were analyzed, and its protein, carbohydrate, and lipid compositions were estimated to be 21.1 ± 0.2%, 48.8 ± 1.8%, and 22.2 ± 0.9%, respectively. In addition, D-glucose and D-mannose were the dominant monosaccharides in the isolate, and its amino acids were composed mainly of aspartic acid, glutamic acid, alanine, and leucine. Moreover, several polyunsaturated fatty acids accounted for about 80% of the total fatty acids in Haematococcus sp. KORDI03, and the astaxanthin content in the red aplanospores was estimated to be 1.8% of the dry cell weight. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of an Haematococcus sp. isolated from Korea, which may be used for bioresource production in the microalgal industry.

• Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology
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• v.14 no.1
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• pp.1-8
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• 2022

This study examined the growth, fatty acid (FA) content, and carotenoids of a newly isolated freshwater microalga, Mychonastes sp. 246, in various culture media. The appropriate temperature and light intensity for culturing Mychonastes sp. 246 were determined as 18℃-22℃ and 200-250 µmol/m²/s using a high throughput photobioreactor. The microalgal cells were cultivated in 0.5 L bubble column photobioreactors using BG11, Bold's Basal media, and f/2 media. According to the growth results of the microalgae, BG11, among the tested media, showed the highest biomass concentrations (3.5 ± 0.1 g/L in 10 d). To enhance the biomass growth of the microalgae, the N:P ratio in BG11 was manipulated from 45:1 to 7:1 based on the stoichiometric cell composition. The biomass concentrations of Mychonastes sp. 246 grown on the manipulated BG11 (MBG) increased to 38% (4.6 ± 0.3 g/L in d) compared with the original BG11 (3.3 g/L). The FA content of the microalgae grown on the MBG was lower (8.4%) than that of the original BG11 (10.1%) while the FA compositions did not exhibit any significant differences. Furthermore, three kinds of carotenoids were identified in Mychonastes sp. 246, zeaxanthin, lutein, and β-carotene. These results suggest an effective strategy for increasing biomass concentrations, FA content, and carotenoids of microalgae by performing a simple N:P adjustment in the culture media.

• Journal of Marine Bioscience and Biotechnology
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• v.15 no.2
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• pp.82-89
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• 2023

Microalgae, as photosynthetic organisms, possess the ability to produce a diverse array of bioactive compounds. This study focused on the transformant Chlamydomonas reinhardtii dZL and subjected it to cultivation under varying light intensities (60, 120, 180, and 240 µmol/m²/s). Our aim was to assess the impact of light intensity on both microalgal biomass and carotenoid production. The cultivation took place in 80 mL bubble column photobioreactors, specifically the Multi-cultivator. Notably, the culture exposed to 240 µmol/m²/s exhibited the most rapid cell growth, surpassing even the cell concentration achieved at 180 µmol/m²/s by day 8. A detailed analysis of the specific irradiance rate over time unequivocally revealed a sharp decline in growth rates when the rate fell below 2 × 10^-10 µmol/cell/s. Although the culture with 60 µmol/m²/s yielded the highest carotenoid content (1.2% of dry weight), the culture exposed to 240 µmol/m²/s recorded the highest carotenoid concentration at 8.9 mg/L owing to its higher biomass. Our findings reveal the critical importance of maintaining a specific irradiance rate above 2 × 10^-10 µmol/cell/s to enhance biomass and carotenoid productivity. This study lays the groundwork for defining optimal light intensity conditions applicable to mass culture systems, with the objective of augmenting C. reinhardtii biomass and optimizing carotenoid productivity.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.343-350
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• 2012

Even though the microalgal species of Isochrysis and Pavlova are widely used as live food in bivalve hatcheries, they are difficult to culture in mass during the summer season. Therefore, the present study was conducted to determine the optimum species or strains of Isochrysis and Pavlova to produce good growth and high contents of fatty acids at temperatures over $30^{\circ}C$. Four species of Isochrysis (I. galbana KMMCC12, I. galbana KMMCC214, I. aff. galbana, and Isochrysis sp.) and four of Pavlova (P. lutheri, P. gyrans, P. viridis, and Pavlova sp.) were cultured at $25^{\circ}C$, $29^{\circ}C$, and $33^{\circ}C$, and then analyzed for specific growth rate and fatty acid composition. Microalgae were cultured in f/2 medium at 23 psu and continuous light of $80{\mu}mol$ photons $m^{-2}s^{-1}$. For the I. galbana, growth rates were highest at $29^{\circ}C$ and decreased at $33^{\circ}C$ to the level observed at $25^{\circ}C$. I. galbana (KMMCC12) and Isochrysis sp. cultured at $29^{\circ}C$ and $33^{\circ}C$, respectively, exhibited the highest growth rates of all Isochrysis species. In terms of fatty acids, I. galbana (KMMCC12) contained higher contents of PUFA and n-3 HUFA at $33^{\circ}C$ than did Isochrysis sp. For species of Pavlova, growth rates of P. gyrans and P. viridis at $29^{\circ}C$ and $33^{\circ}C$, respectively, were higher than those of the other Pavlova species. In particular, P. viridis grew as well at $33^{\circ}C$ as it did at $29^{\circ}C$. However, P. lutheri and Pavlova sp. did not grow at $33^{\circ}C$. In terms of fatty acids, P. viridis cultured at $33^{\circ}C$ also exhibited higher contents of PUFA and n-3 HUFA, as compared to P. gyrans. Based on these results, we suggest that I. galbana (KMMCC12) and P. viridis are suitable species for mass culture during the high temperature season.

• Journal of Life Science
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• v.31 no.10
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• pp.960-968
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• 2021

Since microalgae research started on late 18 century, they have been recognized as one of the most important bioresources used in bioindustry. Owing to the large efforts paid to industrial application of this microorganisms, their importance on food/feed and bioactive compounds has been further extending into the environmental research areas including alternative energy resources, mitigation of the carbon emission, and waste-water treatment. However, despite the importance on their industrial application, the fundamental research field related to the long-term preservation of microalgae culture has not received much attention. However, a less labor intensive and cost-efficient preservation technology enabling biologically active and stable microalgae-culture provides a key success factor in the biotechnological application. Therefore, this study investigated various cutting-edge microalgae cryopreservation technologies currently developed so far, mainly targeting Chlorophyta, which occupies the largest taxon in the classification system of microalgae. In addition, for the development of successful cryopreservation technique, the key factors such as temperature control effect and preservative effect during cryopreservation of microalgae culture were investigated. In addition, the problems with current preservation technology that is being used in Korean domestic biological resource banks and the international microalgal resource banks are described. According to our investigation, currently no standard method for long-term preservation of microalgae is available due to their various morphological and physiological characteristics. To overcome such issues, much more efforts on fundamental research area on the identification of specific biomarker used for microalgae taxonomical classification and further systemic approaches based on strain-specific cryopreservation methods needed.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.432-438
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• 2018

Microalgae hold promise as a renewable energy source for the production of biofuel, as they can convert light energy into chemical energy through photosynthesis. However, cost-efficient harvest of microalgae remains a major challenge to commercial-scale algal biofuel production. We first investigated the potential of electrolytic water as a flocculant for harvesting Tetraselmis sp. Alkaline electrolyzed water (AEW) is produced at the cathode through water electrolysis. It contains mineral ions such as $Na^+$, $K^+$, $Ca^{2+}$, and $Mg^{2+}$ that can act as flocculants. The flocculation activity with AEW was evaluated via culture density, AEW concentration, medium pH, settling time, and ionic strength analyses. The flocculation efficiency was 88.7% at 20% AEW (pH 8, 10 min) with a biomass concentration of 2 g/l. The initial biomass concentration and medium pH had significant influences on the flocculation activity of AEW. A viability test of flocculated microalgal cells was conducted using Evans blue stain, and the cells appeared intact. Furthermore, the growth rate of Tetraselmis sp. in recycled flocculation medium was similar to the growth rate in fresh F/2 medium. Our results suggested that AEW flocculation could be a very useful and affordable methodology for fresh biomass harvesting with environmentally friendly easy operation in part of the algal biofuel production process.

• Journal of the Korea Organic Resources Recycling Association
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.71-76
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• 2000

The biological carbon dioxide fixation using microalgae has been known as an effective carbon dioxide reduction technology. With many environmental factors influencing microalgal productivity, the desirable cultivation factors were investigated using a green alga, Euglena gracilis. It has the high protein and vitamin E to be used as fodder. In batch culture with a photobioreactor, initial pH, temperature, carbon dioxide concentration and light intensity in the optimum cultivation condition were 3.5, $27^{\circ}C$,5-10% and $520{\mu}mol/m^2/s$, respectively. After that, the optimum hydraulic retention time (HRT for the continuous cultivation was 4 days at carbon dioxide concentration of 10%. In this condition, the final dry cell weight was 1.2g/l.