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Life
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Algae Biotechnology: Green Chemistry for High-Value Products
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Algae Biotechnology: Green Chemistry for High-Value Products

A special issue of Life (ISSN 2075-1729). This special issue belongs to the section "Microbiology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (14 June 2024) | Viewed by 8517

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Federico Perozeni

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Guest Editor
Department of Biotechnology, University of Verona, Strada le Grazie 15, 37132 Verona, Italy
Interests: microalgae; bio-factory; high-value products; metabolic engineering
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Flavio Martini

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Guest Editor
Department of Biotechnology, University of Verona, 37129 Verona, Italy
Interests: microalgae; carotenoids; biostimulants; omega-3 fatty acids,; genetic engineering
Prof. Dr. Nikolaos Labrou

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Guest Editor
Laboratory of Enzyme Technology, Department of Biotechnology, Agricultural University of Athens, 118 55 Athens, Greece
Interests: enzyme biotechnology; molecular enzymology; enzyme engineering; protein downstream processing; enzyme biosensor; enzybiotics; algae biotechnology; structure-based drug design; immobilized enzymes; therapeutic enzymes; regulatory affairs in biotechnology; intellectual property law in biotechnology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Algae are primary producers in the global carbon cycle and are able to exploit light and convert inorganic compounds into organic ones, producing oxygen as a side product. More than half of the photosynthesis performed on Earth is completed by algae, as part of a heterogenic group including cyanobacteria, green algae, and other eukaryotic algae.

It is well known that algae play a central role—as alternatives to plants—to ensure food, raw materials and energy for a growing population. Wastewaters and flue gas can be used to ensure nutrients and CO2 for carbon fixation in a perfect “green circular economy”.

Being easy to manipulate, cheap, and fast growing, algae represent a good solar-driven cell factory for the production of several high-value bio-products. Algae are rich in proteins, lipids, carbohydrates and vitamins and, for that reason, mainly supply the food–feed and cosmetics industries. In recent years, several advantages have been made in the use of algae for bio-factory or bio-refinery, offering promise to overcome limitations in algal cultivation to achieve cost-effective production.    

This Special Issue aims to collect original research articles, reviews and short communications regarding the use of algae in bio-factory or bio-refinery approaches, or in phytoremediation, considering the advantages of boosting algal growth.       

Dr. Flavio Martini
Dr. Nikolaos Labrou
Dr. Federico Perozeni
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Life is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • algae
  • microalgae
  • metabolic engineering
  • high-value products
  • bio-factory
  • bio-refinery
  • phytoremediation

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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12 pages, 1391 KiB  
Article
Screening and Selection of Antibiotics for Enhanced Production of Astaxanthin by Haematococcus lacustris
by Vijay Rayamajhi, Huijeong Byeon, Yunji An, Taesoo Kim, Jihyun Lee, JongDae Lee, KwangSoo Lee, ChulHyun Kim, HyunWoung Shin and SangMok Jung
Life 2024, 14(8), 977; https://doi.org/10.3390/life14080977 - 2 Aug 2024
Viewed by 875
Abstract
Haematococcus lacustris (Girod-Chantrans) Rostafinski (Chlorophyta) is the richest microalgal source of astaxanthin. Natural astaxanthin from H. lacustris has been widely studied and used for commercial production worldwide. In this study, we examined the effects of 11 antibiotics (dihydrostreptomycin sulphate, neomycin, chloramphenicol, penicillin, streptomycin, [...] Read more.
Haematococcus lacustris (Girod-Chantrans) Rostafinski (Chlorophyta) is the richest microalgal source of astaxanthin. Natural astaxanthin from H. lacustris has been widely studied and used for commercial production worldwide. In this study, we examined the effects of 11 antibiotics (dihydrostreptomycin sulphate, neomycin, chloramphenicol, penicillin, streptomycin, ampicillin, kanamycin, gentamycin, hygromycin B, tetracycline, and paromomycin) on the biomass dry weight, growth, and astaxanthin yield of H. lacustris using Jaworski’s medium without a nitrogen source. Astaxanthin content in H. lacustris was improved in the presence of ampicillin (0.25 g/L, 0.5 g/L, 1 g/L), chloramphenicol (0.25 g/L), and penicillin (0.25 g/L, 0.5 g/L, 1 g/L) in comparison to the control on day 15. The greatest increase in astaxanthin content on day 15 (6.69-fold) was obtained with the addition of penicillin (0.5 g/L) in comparison to the control. Similarly, on day 15, the cell numbers were also the highest for the H. lacustris culture grown with the addition of penicillin (0.5 g/L). Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Algae Biotechnology: Green Chemistry for High-Value Products)
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22 pages, 11026 KiB  
Article
Effect of Abscisic Acid on Growth, Fatty Acid Profile, and Pigment Composition of the Chlorophyte Chlorella (Chromochloris) zofingiensis and Its Co-Culture Microbiome
by Tatiana A. Kozlova, Alexander V. Kartashov, Elena Zadneprovskaya, Anastasia Krapivina, Peter Zaytsev, Olga B. Chivkunova and Alexei E. Solovchenko
Life 2023, 13(2), 452; https://doi.org/10.3390/life13020452 - 6 Feb 2023
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 2351
Abstract
Microalga Chlorella (Chromochloris) zofingiensis has been gaining increasing attention of investigators as a potential competitor to Haematococcus pluvialis for astaxanthin and other xanthophylls production. Phytohormones, including abscisic acid (ABA), at concentrations relevant to that in hydroponic wastewater, have proven themselves as strong inductors [...] Read more.
Microalga Chlorella (Chromochloris) zofingiensis has been gaining increasing attention of investigators as a potential competitor to Haematococcus pluvialis for astaxanthin and other xanthophylls production. Phytohormones, including abscisic acid (ABA), at concentrations relevant to that in hydroponic wastewater, have proven themselves as strong inductors of microalgae biomass productivity and biosynthesis of valuable molecules. The main goal of this research was to evaluate the influence of phytohormone ABA on the physiology of C. zofingiensis in a non-aseptic batch experiment. Exogenous ABA stimulated C. zofingiensis cell division, biomass production, as well as chlorophyll, carotenoid, and lipid biosynthesis. The relationship between exogenous ABA concentration and the magnitude of the observed effects was non-linear, with the exception of cell growth and biomass production. Fatty acid accumulation and composition depended on the concentration of ABA tested. Exogenous ABA induced spectacular changes in the major components of the culture microbiome of C. zofingiensis. Thus, the abundance of the representatives of the genus Rhodococcus increased drastically with an increase in ABA concentration, whereas the abundance of the representatives of Reyranella and Bradyrhizobium genera declined. The possibilities of exogenous ABA applications for the enhancing of the biomass, carotenoid, and fatty acid productivity of the C. zofingiensis cultures are discussed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Algae Biotechnology: Green Chemistry for High-Value Products)
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9 pages, 1319 KiB  
Article
The Influence of Ultrasound on the Growth of Nannochloris sp. in Modified Growth Medium
by Alin Cristian Nicolae Vintila, Mircea Vinatoru, Ana-Maria Galan, Alexandru Vlaicu, Mihaela Ciltea-Udrescu, Anca Paulenco, Adina Ionuta Gavrila and Ioan Calinescu
Life 2023, 13(2), 413; https://doi.org/10.3390/life13020413 - 1 Feb 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1498
Abstract
The influence of ultrasound irradiation on the algal biomass productivity as well as its oil content and fatty acids profile, grown in a modified Zarrouk medium, i.e., deproteinized whey waste solution, was investigated. The algal samples (Nannochloris sp. 424-1 microalgae) were grown [...] Read more.
The influence of ultrasound irradiation on the algal biomass productivity as well as its oil content and fatty acids profile, grown in a modified Zarrouk medium, i.e., deproteinized whey waste solution, was investigated. The algal samples (Nannochloris sp. 424-1 microalgae) were grown for 7 days in a thermostated incubator at 28 °C, shaken under continuous light. During this period, the algal biomass was subjected to induced stress by ultrasonic irradiation at different powers and sonication time. The obtained results demonstrate that ultrasound stressing of algae biomass has a positive effect on both the quantity of biomass and the oil obtained, also causing a shift in fatty acid composition by increasing the proportion of C16 and C18 polyunsaturated fatty acids. A low dosage level of exposure to the ultrasound led to algal biomass increase as well as lipid accumulation. For both types of irradiation modes which were investigated, daily and only initial irradiation, the beneficial effect of the ultrasound decreases as the exposure time increases and the excessive sonication becomes detrimental to microalgae growth. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Algae Biotechnology: Green Chemistry for High-Value Products)
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Review

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14 pages, 1436 KiB  
Review
Current Nuclear Engineering Strategies in the Green Microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii
by Federico Perozeni and Thomas Baier
Life 2023, 13(7), 1566; https://doi.org/10.3390/life13071566 - 15 Jul 2023
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2766
Abstract
The green model microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii recently emerged as a sustainable production chassis for the efficient biosynthesis of recombinant proteins and high-value metabolites. Its capacity for scalable, rapid and light-driven growth in minimal salt solutions, its simplicity for genetic manipulation and its “Generally [...] Read more.
The green model microalga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii recently emerged as a sustainable production chassis for the efficient biosynthesis of recombinant proteins and high-value metabolites. Its capacity for scalable, rapid and light-driven growth in minimal salt solutions, its simplicity for genetic manipulation and its “Generally Recognized As Safe” (GRAS) status are key features for its application in industrial biotechnology. Although nuclear transformation has typically resulted in limited transgene expression levels, recent developments now allow the design of powerful and innovative bioproduction concepts. In this review, we summarize the main obstacles to genetic engineering in C. reinhardtii and describe all essential aspects in sequence adaption and vector design to enable sufficient transgene expression from the nuclear genome. Several biotechnological examples of successful engineering serve as blueprints for the future establishment of C. reinhardtii as a green cell factory. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Algae Biotechnology: Green Chemistry for High-Value Products)
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