Enhancement of Pigments Production by Nannochloropsis oculata Cells in Response to Bicarbonate Supply

Giovanna Salbitani, Francesco Del Prete, Simona Carfagna, Giovanni Sansone and Carmela M. A. Barone
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Giovanna Salbitani: Dipartimento di Biologia, Università di Napoli Federico II, Via Cinthia 21, 80126 Napoli, Italy
Francesco Del Prete: Dipartimento di Biologia, Università di Napoli Federico II, Via Cinthia 21, 80126 Napoli, Italy
Simona Carfagna: Dipartimento di Biologia, Università di Napoli Federico II, Via Cinthia 21, 80126 Napoli, Italy
Giovanni Sansone: Dipartimento di Biologia, Università di Napoli Federico II, Via Cinthia 21, 80126 Napoli, Italy
Carmela M. A. Barone: Dipartimento di Agraria, Sezione Scienze Delle Produzioni Animali, Università Degli Studi di Napoli Federico II, Via Università 100, 80055 Portici, Italy

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 21, 1-8

Abstract: In this study, the effects of bicarbonate addition on growth and pigment contents of the unicellular microalga Nannochloropsis oculata , were evaluated. N. oculata represents an interesting source of biomolecules widely used for food supplements and nutraceuticals. The bicarbonate was supplemented to microalgae cultures at concentrations of 0, 6, 18, 30, 42 and 60 mM. The cultures supplemented with salt at highest concentrations (42 and 60 mM) showed a significant increase in algal growth, demonstrated by the optical density spread. The intracellular content of pigments such as chlorophyll a and total carotenoids reached the highest values in cells from cultures supplied with bicarbonate. In fact, concentrations of bicarbonate from 30 to 60 mM strongly improved, for a short period of only 72 h, the cellular levels of chlorophylls and carotenoids. These are interesting pigments with commercial applications. The utilization of bicarbonate could represent an interesting sustainable opportunity to improve microalgae cultivation for cellular growth and pigment contents.

Keywords: bicarbonate; carotenoids; chlorophyll; microalgae; Nannochloropsis oculata (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
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