• Biotechnology and Bioprocess Engineering:BBE
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• v.7 no.5
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• pp.295-302
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• 2002

To understand the utilization property of light energy, Synechococcus sp. MA19, a poly-${\beta}$-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) producer, was cultivated at the different incident light intensities of 15.3, 50.0 and 78.2 W/$m^2$ using media with and without phosphate. From the results of metabolic flux analysis, it was found that the cell yield based on ATP synthesis was estimated as $3.5{\times}10^{-3}$ kg-biomass/mol-ATP in these cultures. Under the examined conditions, there were no significant differences in the efficiency of light energy conversion to chemical energies estimated as ATP synthesis and reducing potential (NADH + NADPH) formation whether the PHB synthesis took place or not. The energy converted from light to ATP was kept relatively high around the energy absorbed by the cells of $2.5-3.0{\times}10^{6} J\;h^{-1}\;kg^{-1}$, whereas the energy of reducing potential was hardly changed in the examined range of the energy absorbed by the cells.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.21 no.7
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• pp.697-702
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• 2011

A strain of the cyanobacterium Arthrospira was isolated from Lake Chahannaoer in northern China and was characterized according to microscopic morphology, photosynthetic oxygen-evolving activity, growth rate, and nutritional profile. Compared with thermophilic Arthrospira species occurring naturally in tropical and subtropical lakes, this isolate is mesophilic and grows optimally at ${\sim}20^{\circ}C$. The total protein, fatty acid, phycocyanin, carotenoid, and chlorophyll a contents were 67.6, 6.1, 4.32, 0.29, and 0.76 grams per 100 grams of dry weight, respectively. The strain is rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs). An essential omega-3 fatty acid, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), was detected, and ${\gamma}$-linolenic acid (GLA) and DHA accounted for 28.3% of the total fatty acid content. These features of this newly isolated strain make it potentially useful in commercial mass culture in local areas or as a biofuel feedstock. It is also an alternative resource for studying the metabolic PUFA pathways and mechanisms of cold stress tolerance in cyanobacteria.