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This the synopsis of our current work on estimation of omega fatty acids which
plays an important role in human cellular metabolism .
SYNOPSIS
Algae are photosynthetic organisms that occur in most habitats, ranging from marine and
freshwater to desert sands and from hot boiling springs to snow and ice. They exhibit a
wide range of reproductive strategies, from simple, asexual cell division to complex
forms of sexual reproduction. Algae are important as primary producers of organic matter
at the base of the food chain. They also provide oxygen for other aquatic life. Microalgae
are an excellent source of polyunsaturated fatty acids specially ω-3 group, protein content
and many other nutritional value products. Microbial oil or single-cell oil (SCO)
production is a relatively new concept, first proposed in the twentieth century (Ratledge
2001). Prices for most bulk plant oils and animal fats are relatively low; to make cheaper
microbial PUFA, production of high value-added products will be linked in the process.
In recent years, biodiesel was considered one of a promising renewable transportation
fuels, as an ideal replacement for fossil fuel (Antolin et al., 2002). A renewed interest has
arisen towards producing biodiesel from micro algae due to its easy cultivation and low
cost production (Sharma et al., 2008). Presently, we have find algae as an alternative
source of bioenergy as well as nutritional value proteins, polyunsaturated fatty acids such
as, DHA and EPA. At present fish oil is the only feasible source of DHA but alternatively
it may be produced from bacteria, fungi and microalgae (L. Sijsma, 2004). Proteins make
up a large fraction of the biomass of actively growing microalgae and cyanobacteria that
has wide application in food and nutrition (Cynthia V et al., 2010). Protein is essential
requirement of our body as they make enzymes, hormones, and other body chemicals.
Protein is an important building block of bones, muscles, cartilage, skin, and blood. EPA
is an essential fatty acid for the human metabolism and is involved in the blood
equilibrium, lowers triglyceride levels in blood serum, reduces the degree of platelet
aggregation, is anti-inflammatory and prevents hypertriglycerideia and various
carcinomas (Antonio Ramirez Fajardo., 2007). Recently, DHA attracted much attention
because of its physiological function in the human body. DHA is an essential component
of cell membranes in some human tissues and, for instance, accounts for over 60% of the
total fatty acids in the rod outer segment in the retina (Giusto et al. 2000). Furthermore,
DHA is regarded to be essential for the proper visual and neurological development of
infants, because of its role as a structural lipid component. In today`s commercially
available products such as bournvita contain DHA which is recommended for the infants
to help them grow sharper an stronger. The commercial production of DHA from marine
algae is the subject of growing research.
In the present experiment, growth of Chlorella Pyrenoidosa in Fogg`s medium is
studied. The green alga is thoroughly examined for its bio-chemical composition and so
tested for presence of polyunsaturated fatty acids and protein. The growth of algae and
biomass concentration was monitored by optical density measurement at 660 nm by
UV/visible spectrophotometer. Cells were concentrated by centrifugation, washed with
de-ionized water and dried (60°C) to determine dry weight (expressed as g/l). The algae
lipid is extracted by solvent extraction for its application in biodiesel production and the
composition of lipids is determined by GC-MS for its application as food supplements
and pharmacy. The GC-MS result oil sample shows significant percentage of EPA, DHA
and Linolenic acids belong to ω-3 PUFA group. Also the result clearly indicates the use
of Chlorella oil for biodiesel application. The crude protein was estimated by Lowry
method (Lowry et al., 1951) and found high quantity of protein that has good nutritive
value. The project will be extended in future to enhance these biochemical components
by exposing algae to different culture conditions. The other objective will be to utilize the
residue of microalgae as fertilizer after complete extraction of essential polyunsaturated
fatty acids.
References
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Ratledge C (2001) Microorganisms as sources of polyunsaturated fatty acids. In:
Gunstone FD (ed) structured and modified lipids. Dekker, New York, pp 351–399
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Antolin G, Tinaut FV, Bricenoy(2002),Optimisation of biodiesel production by
sunflower oil transesterification ,Bioresource technol., pp 111-114.
Sharma, Y.C., Singh, B. & Upadhyay, S.N. (2008). Advancements in
development and
characterization of biodiesel: A review. Fuel, pp. 2355–2373.
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4Sijtsma.L M.E De Swaaf (2003),Biotechnological production and application of
omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids decosahexanoic
acid, Appl Micro
Biotechnology, pp 146-153
Cynthia V, Maria Del, Francisco GAF, Cristina SB,Yusuf C,Jose MFS (2010),
Protein measurement of microalgal ad cyanobacterial biomass.,Bioresource
technol, pp 7587-7591.
Antonio RF, Luis EC, Alfonso RM, Fracisco GF (2007), Lipid extraction from the
microalga Phaeodactylum tricornutum European Journal of Lipid Science and
Technology, pp120-126
Guisto NM,Pasquare SJ,Salvadore PI,Lipid metabolism in vertebrate retinal rod
outer segmentsprog lipid,pp 315-391.
Lowry O.H.(1951) ,J.Biol .Chem.265-275.