1. Commercial applications of microalgae
- Author
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Pauline Spolaore, Elie Duran, Claire Joannis-Cassan, Arsène Isambert, Laboratoire de Génie des Procédés et Matériaux - EA 4038 (LGPM), CentraleSupélec, CIERM, Université Paris-Sud - Paris 11 (UP11), EVAFLOR (FRANCE), and Ecole Centrale Paris (FRANCE)
- Subjects
0106 biological sciences ,Animal feed ,media_common.quotation_subject ,ALGAL PRODUCTS ,Bioengineering ,Phycobiliproteins ,Cosmetics ,Biology ,01 natural sciences ,Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology ,03 medical and health sciences ,[CHIM.GENI]Chemical Sciences/Chemical engineering ,Aquaculture ,Culture of microalgae in hatcheries ,010608 biotechnology ,Microalgae ,Génie chimique ,Animals ,Humans ,Nutritional Physiological Phenomena ,Génie des procédés ,030304 developmental biology ,media_common ,Nutrition ,2. Zero hunger ,0303 health sciences ,business.industry ,microalgae ,Fatty Acids ,carotenoids ,Eukaryota ,Pigments, Biological ,Carotenoids ,Biotechnology ,Applications ,phycobiliproteins ,Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena ,Polyunsaturated fatty acids ,business ,polyunsaturated fatty acids - Abstract
International audience; The first use of microalgae by humans dates back 2000 years to the Chinese, who used Nostoe to survive during famine. However, microalgal biotechnology only really began to develop in the middle of the last century. Nowadays, there are numerous commercial applications of microalgae. For example, (i) microalgae can be used to enhance the nutritional value of food and animal feed owing to their chemical composition, (ii) they play a crucial role in aquaculture and (iii) they can be incorporated into cosmetics. Moreover, they are cultivated as a source of highly valuable molecules. For example, polyunsaturated fatty acid oils are added to infant formulas and nutritional supplements and pigments are important as natural dyes. Stable isotope biochemicals help in structural determination and metabolic studies. Future research should focus on the improvement of production systems and the genetic modification of strains. Microalgal products would in that way become even more diversified and economically competitive.
- Published
- 2006
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