The freshwater alga Chroothece richteriana (Rhodophyta) as a potential source of lipids

• Published in: Food chemistry Vol. 162; pp. 143 - 148
• Main Authors: Aboal, Marina, González-Silvera, Daniel, Roldán, Mónica, Hernández-Mariné, Mariona, López-Jiménez, José Ángel, Whitton, Brian A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01.11.2014; Elsevier
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; Chroothece; Chroothece richteriana; Fatty Acids, Omega-3; Food toxicology; Fresh Water; Lipid accumulation; Lipids - chemistry; Medical sciences; Nitrogen/phosphorus ratio; Phaeophyceae - metabolism; Phycocyanin; Polyunsaturated fatty acids; Rhodophyta; Rhodophyta - chemistry; Toxicology; Spain; Phycocyanin; Lipid accumulation; Chroothece; Polyunsaturated fatty acids; Nitrogen/phosphorus ratio; Algae; Polyunsaturated fatty acid; Lipids; Phosphorus; Nitrogen; Freshwater environment; Ratio; Biological accumulation
• ISSN: 0308-8146; 1873-7072
• DOI: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2014.04.036

•Chroothece contains a high proportion of some PUFAs (DHA, EPA, AA and GLA).•Chroothece has a high carotenoid content.•No phycoerythrin was detected in Chroothece cells.•Chroothece grows in fairly extreme conditions in nature.•Chroothece may be an alternative source of compounds for nutrition and medicine. During an ecological study of Chroothece (Rhodophyta) in a small river in a semi-arid region of south-east Spain it became clear that most of these cells had a high lipid content. This suggested potential uses in biotechnology, which has been investigated further. The colonies, which occur in full sunlight, are typically orange-brown. Most, perhaps all, the yellow-orange colour is associated with their high carotenoid content, with the carotenoid to chlorophyll ratio up to 2.7. The polyunsaturated fatty acyl composition of the glycerides was 35.3% of the dry weight. This consisted mainly of omega-3 (5.9%) and omega-6 (29.4%) fats. The relatively high proportion of docosahexaenoyl (1.78%), eicosapentaenoyl (14.15%), arachidonoyl (0.92%) and γ-linolenoyl (0.78%) suggests use for medical and dietary purposes. All cells have a high phycocyanin content whilst phycoerythrin is absent. The alga has a wide distribution globally and hence provides scope for selecting strains with optimum properties.