• Environmental Engineering Research
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• v.23 no.2
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• pp.205-209
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• 2018

The spectral composition of light can affect the growth and biochemical composition of photosynthetic microalgae. This study examined the use of light filtering through a solution of soluble colored additives, a cost-effective method to alter the light spectrum, on the growth and lipid production of an oleaginous microalga, Nannochloropsis gaditana (N. gaditana). Cells were photoautotrophically cultivated under a white light emitting diode (LED) alone (control) or under a white LED that passed through a solution of red and yellow color additive (4:1 ratio) that blocked light below 600 nm. The specific growth rate was significantly greater under filtered light than white light ($0.2672d^{-1}$ vs. $0.1930d^{-1}$). Growth under filtered light also increased the fatty acid methyl ester (FAME) yield by 22.4% and FAME productivity by 80.0%, relative to the white light control. In addition, the content of saturated fatty acids was greater under filtered light, so the biodiesel products had better stability. These results show that passing white light through an inexpensive color filter can simultaneously enhance cellular growth and lipid productivity of N. gaditana. This approach of optimizing the light spectrum may be applicable to other species of microalgae.

• Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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• v.26 no.5
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• pp.854-866
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• 2016

The production cost of biodiesel from microalgae is still not competitive, compared with that of petroleum fuels. The genetic improvement of microalgal strains to increase triacylglycerol (TAG) accumulation is one way to reduce production costs. One of the most promising approaches is the isolation of starch-deficient mutants, which have been reported to successfully increase TAG yields. To date, such a stable mutant is not available in an oleaginous marine microalga, despite several advantages of using marine species for biodiesel production. Algae in the genus Dunaliella are known to tolerate high salt concentration and other environmental stresses. In addition, the cultivation processes for large-scale outdoor commercialization have been well established for this genus. In this study, Dunaliella tertiolecta was used to screen for starch-deficient mutants, using an iodine vapor-staining method. Four out of 20,016 UV-mutagenized strains showed a substantial reduction of starch content. A significantly higher TAG content, up to 3-fold of the wild-type level, was observed in three of the mutants upon induction by nitrogen depletion. The carotenoid production and growth characteristics of these mutants, under both normal and oxidative stress conditions, were not compromised, suggesting that these processes are not necessarily affected by starch deficiency. The results from this work open up new possibilities for exploring Dunaliella for biodiesel production.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Biology
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• v.31 no.4
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• pp.288-294
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• 2013

Recently, sustainable production of biofuel using algal biomass is being pursued because of its enormous potential. First and foremost, securing superior strains to develop an efficient production system for algal biodiesel through screening or genetic improvement of microalgae is necessary. The genus of Botryococcus is regarded as one of the superior microalgae for biodiesel production due to its ability to accumulate high amounts of lipids and hydrocarbons. However, its low growth rate is a bottleneck for large-scale production and commercialization. The purpose of this study is to obtain indigenous Botryococcus strains which possess high lipid content and biomass productivity. The Botryococcus sp. was isolated from the Seobu Reservoir in Jeju Island and identified as Botryococcus sudeticus J2 by comparative analysis of 18s rRNA gene and ITS regions. The biomass productivity and lipid content of B. sudeticus J2 were 0.116 g $L^{-1}day^{-1}$ and 40.1% of dry wt., respectively. This was higher than the value of B. braunii UTEX 572, which is widely regarded as a superior strain among Botryococcus species. The relatively high growth rate of B. sudeticus J2 was achieved under a light intensity of 240 ${\mu}mol$ photons $m^{-2}s^{-1}$ with ambient air spargingwhen compared to 120 ${\mu}mol$ photons $m^{-2}s^{-1}$ with 2% $CO_2$ supply. In summary, it is likely that the isolated B. sudeticus J2 can be used for the mass cultivation and biodiesel production.