Enhanced production of δ-aminolevulinic acid, bilipigments, and antioxidants from tropical algae of India

• Published in: Biotechnology and bioprocess engineering 2009, 14(3), , pp.316-321
• Main Authors: Pandey, Usha (Faculty of Science and Technology, M. G. Kashividya Pith, Varanasi, India), Pandey, Jitendra (Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, India), E-mail: [e-mail]
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: ANTIOXIDANTES; ANTIOXIDANTS; ANTIOXYDANT; BIOMASA; BIOMASS; BIOMASSE; Biotechnology; blue green algae; Chemistry; Chemistry and Materials Science; delta-ALA; Industrial and Production Engineering; nutraceuticals; phycobilipigments; 생물공학
• ISSN: 1226-8372; 1976-3816
• DOI: 10.1007/s12257-008-0234-x

We studied the enhanced production of high quality biomass, δ-aminolevulinic acid (δ-ALA), bilipigments, and antioxidants from five tropical blue green algae (cyanobacteria) in a full factorial design using free and immobilized cells in batch culture. Production of nutraceuticals was high in spray dried powder prepared from immobilized cell cultures. Nostochopsis lobatus showed superiority over rest of the species with respect to bilipigments, δ-ALA, nutritive value, antioxidant capacity, and ascorbate oxidase (APX) activity. Antioxidative capacity of phycobiliproteins extracted from these cyanobacteria (121.15 μM TE/g, Nostoc verrucosum to 217.62 μM TE/g, Nostochopsis lobatus) was invariably higher than those observed for higher plant sources and substantially increased under immobilized cell culture condition. Antioxidative enzyme, ascorbate oxidase remained stable in dry food preparations with considerably high activity under immobilized cell preparations (APX∧max, 3.40 μmol/min/mg chlorophyll). These observations have important connotations in light of upcoming food and nutraceutical industries in the global market. Use of immobilized cells in batch culture could be an effective approach for scaling up production for commercial use.