Abstract
Macro- and microalgae are used in a variety of commercial products with many more in development. This chapter outlines the major products, species used, methods of production, extraction, and processing as well as market sizes and trends. Foods, nutraceuticals, and feeds are the major commercial products from algae. Well-known culinary products include Nori, Wakame, Kombu and Dulse, from whole macroalgal biomass. The microalgae Spirulina and Chlorella have been widely marketed as nutritional supplements for both humans and animals. Several microalgae with a high nutritional value and energy content are grown commercially as aquaculture feed. The major processed products from macroalgae are the hydrocolloids, including carrageenan, agars, and alginates, used as gelling agents in a variety of foods and healthcare products. Pigments extracted from algae include β-carotene, astaxanthin, and phycobiliproteins. These are generally used as food colorants, as additives in animal feed or as nutraceuticals for their antioxidant properties (Radmer in Bioscience 46:263–270, 1996; Pulz and Gross in Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology 65:635–648, 2004). Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are another high value product derived from microalgae. Other potential products include fertilizers, fuels, cosmetics and chemicals. Algae also have application in bioremediation and CO2 sequestration, as well as producing many interesting bioactive compounds. Algae have great potential to produce a wide range of valuable compounds, beyond their current exploitation. To date, commercialization of new products has been slow (Milledge in Reviews in Environmental Science and Biotechnology 10:31–41, 2011; Wijffels in Trends in Biotechnology 26:26–31, 2007; Radmer in Bioscience 46:263–270, 1996; Pulz and Gross in Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology 65:635–648, 2004; Spolaore et al. in Journal of Bioscience and Bioengineering 101(2):87–96, 2006), however, microalgal biotechnology is a relatively new industry, and therefore, it is unsurprising that significant challenges remain to be solved. The advantages associated with algal production are likely to ensure that efforts continue.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
References
Abalde, J., Betancourt, L., Torres, E., Cid, A., & Barwell, C. (1998). Purification and characterization of phycocyanin from the marine cyanobacterium Synechococcus sp. 109201. Plant Science, 136, 109–120.
Agostoni, P. G., Marenzi, G. C., & Ganzerla, P. (1995). Lung-heart interaction as a substrate for the improvement in exercise capacity after body fluid volume depletion in moderate congestive heart failure. The American Journal of Cardiology, 76, 793–798.
Allmendinger, A., Spavieri, J., Kaiser, M., Casey, R., Hingley-Wilson, S., Lalvani, A., et al. (2010). Antiprotozoal, antimycobacterial and cytotoxic potential of twenty-three British and Irish red algae. Phytotherapy Research, 24, 1099–1103.
Apt, K. E., & Behrens, P. W. (1999). Commercial developments in microalgal biotechnology. Journal of Phycology, 35(2), 215–226.
Baracos, V. E., Mazurak, V. C., & David, W. L. (2004). n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids throughout the cancer trajectory: influence on disease incidence, progression, response to therapy and cancer-associated cachexia. Nutrition Research Reviews, 17, 177–192.
Barclay, W. R., Meager, K. M., & Abril, J. R. (1994). Heterotrophic production of long chain omega-3 fatty acids utilizing algae and algae-like microorganisms. Journal of Applied Phycology, 6, 123–129.
Belarbi, E. H., Molina, E., & Chisti, Y. (1999). A process for high yield and scaleable recovery of high purity eicosapentenoic acid esters from microalgae and fish oil. Enzyme Microbiology and Technology, 26, 516–529.
Belay, A. (1997). Mass culture of Spirulina (Arthrospira) outdoors—The Earthrise Farms Experience. In A. Vonshak (Ed.), Spirulina platensis (Arthrospira): Physiology, Cell-Biology and Biotechnology (pp. 131–158). London: Taylor and Francis.
Ben-Amotz, A. (1999). Production of-carotene from Dunaliella. In Z. Cohen (Ed.), Chemicals from microalgae (pp. 196–204). New York: CRC Press.
Benemann, J. R. (2000). Hydrogen production by microalgae. Journal of Applied Phycology, 12, 291–300.
Berge, J., Gouygou, J., Dubacq, J., & Durand, P. (1995). Reassessment of lipid composition of the diatom Skelotenema costatum. Phytochemistry, 39(5), 1017–1021.
Bermejo, R., Felipe, M., Talavera, E., & Alvarez-Pez, J. (2006). Expanded bed adsorption chromatography for recovery of phycocyanins from the microalga Spirulina platensis. Chromatographia, 63, 59–66.
Bhadury, P., & Wright, P. C. (2004). Exploitation of Marine Algae: Biogenic compounds for potential antifouling applications. Planta, 219(4), 561–578.
Bhatnagar, I., & Kim, S. (2010). Immense essence of excellence: Marine microbial bioactive compounds. Marine Drugs, 8, 2673–2701.
Borowitzka, M. A. (1992). Algal biotechnology products and processes—matching science and economics. Journal of Applied Phycology, 4, 267–279.
Borowitzka, M. A. (1997). Microalgae for aquaculture: Opportunities and constraints. Journal of Applied Phycology, 9(5), 393–401.
Brett, M. T., Müller-Navarra, D. C., & Gulati, R. D. (1997). The role of highly unsaturated fatty acids in aquatic foodweb processes. Freshwater Biology, 38, 483–499.
Burja, A. M., Banaigs, B., Abou-Mansour, E., Burgess, J. G., & Wright, P. C. (2001). Marine cyanobacteria-a prolific source of natural products. Tetrahedron, 57, 9347–9377.
Bux, F. (Ed.). (2013). Biotechnological applications of microalgae: Biodiesel and value added products. Florida: Taylor Francis Group.
Chen, F., & Zhang, Y. (1997). High cell density mixotrophic culture of Spirulina platensis on glucose for phycocyanin production using a fed-batch system. Enzyme and Microbial Technology, 20, 221–224.
Chisti, Y. (2013). Constraints to commercialization of algal fuels. Journal of Biotechnology, 167(3), 201–214.
Dufossé, L., Galaup, P., Yaron, A., Arad, S. M., Blanc, P., Chidambara Murthy, K. N., & Ravishankar, G. (2005). Microorganisms and microalgae as sources of pigments for food use: A scientific oddity or an industrial reality? Trends in Food Science and Technology, 16(9), 389–406.
Eriksen, N. T. (2008). Production of phycocyanin—a pigment with applications in biology, biotechnology, foods and medicine. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, 80, 1–14.
Falch, B. S., Koenig, G. M., Wright, A. D., Sticher, O., Ruegger, H., & Bernardinelli, G. (1992). Ambigol A and B: new biologically active polychlorinated aromatic compounds from the terrestrial blue-green alga Fischerella ambigua. The Journal of Organic Chemistry, 58(24), 6570–6575.
Fon Sing, S., Isdepsky, A., Borowitzka, M., & Lewis, D. M. (2014). Pilot-scale continuous recycling of growth medium for the mass culture of a halotolerant Tetraselmis sp. in raceway ponds under increasing salinity: A novel protocol for commercial microalgal biomass production. Bioresource Technology, 161, 47–54.
Gerwick, W. H., Tan, L.T., & Sitachitta, N. (2001). Nitrogen-containing metabolites from marine cyanobacteria. In: G. A. Cordell, (Ed.), The Alkaloids: Chemistry and Biology 57, 75–184.
Guschina, I. A., & Harwood, J. (1996). Lipids and lipid metabolism in eukaryotic algae. Progress in Lipid Research, 45(2), 160–186.
Gustafson, K. R., Cardellina, J. H., Fuller, R. W., Wieslow, O. S., Kiser, R. F., Sander, K. M., et al. (1989). AIDS antiviral sulfolipids from cyanobacteria (blue-green algae). Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 81, 1254–1258.
Harrison, S. T. L., Richardson, C., & Griffiths, M. J. (2013). Analysis of microalgal biorefineries for bioenergy from an environmental and economic perspective focus on algal biodiesel. In F. Bux (Ed.), Biotechnological Applications of Microalgae: Biodiesel and Value-Added Products (pp. 113–136). Boca Raton: CRC Press. ISBN 978-146-651-529-1.
Harun, R., Singh, M., Forde, G. M., & Danquah, M. K. (2010). Bioprocess engineering of microalgae to produce a variety of consumer products. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 14(3), 1037–1047.
Hurdato, A. Q. (2014). Developments in production technology of Kappaphycus in the Phillipines: more than four decades of farming. In Paper presented at the 5th Congress of the International Society for Applied Phycology, Australia Technology Park, Sydney, 22–27 June 2014.
Jensen, A. (1993). Present and future needs for algae and algal products. In A. R. O. Chapman, M. T. Brown, & M. Lahaye, (Eds.), Developments in Hydrobiology, Vol. 85, pp. 15–23.
Jordan, M., & Wislon, L. (2004). Microtubules as a target for anticancer drugs. Nature Reviews Cancer, 4, 253–265.
Judé, S., Roger, S., Martel, E., Besson, P., Richard, S., Bougnoux, P., et al. (2006). Dietary long-chain omega-3 fatty acids of marine origin: A comparison of their protective effects on coronary heart disease and breast cancers. Progress in Biophysics and Molecular Biology, 90(1–3), 299–325.
Kathiresan, S., Sarada, R., Bhattacharya, S., & Ravishankar, G. A. (2007). Culture media optimization for growth and phycoerythrin production from Porphyridium purpureum. Biotechnology and Bioengineering, 96(3), 456–463.
Khatoon, H., Banerjee, S., Yusoff, F. M., & Shariff, M. (2009). Evaluation of indigenous marine periphytic Amphora, Navicula and Cymbella grown on substrate as feed supplement in Penaeus monodon postlarval hatchery system. Aquaculture Nutrition, 15(2), 186–193.
Kim, S. K., Dominic-Ravichandran, Y., Khan, S. B., & Kim, Y. T. (2008). Prospective of the cosmeceuticals derived from marine organisms. Biotechnoogy and Bioprocess Engineering, 13, 511–523.
Kris-Etherton, P. M., Harris, W. S., & Appel, I. J. (2003). Omega-3 fatty acids and cardiovascular disease. New Recommendations from the American Heart Association, 23(2), 151–152.
Mata, T. M., Martins, A., & Caetano, N. S. (2010). Microalgae for biodiesel production and other applications: A review. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 14(1), 217–232.
Merrill, J. E. (1993). Development of nori markets in the western world. Journal of Applied Phycology, 5(2), 149–154.
Metting, F. B. (1996). Biodiversity and application of microalgae. Journal of Industrial Microbiology, 17, 477–489.
Miao, X., & Wu, Q. (2006). Biodiesel production from heterotrophic microalgal oil. Bioresource Technology, 97(6), 841–846.
Milledge, J. J. (2011). Commercial application of microalgae other than as biofuels: A brief review. Reviews in Environmental Science and Biotechnology, 10, 31–41.
Mita, A. C., Hammond, L. A., Bonate, P. L., Weiss, G., McCreery, H., Syed, S., et al. (2006). Phase I and pharmacokinetic study of tasidotin hydrochloride (ILX651), a third-generation dolastatin-15 analogues, administered weekly for 3 weeks every 28 days in patients with advanced solid tumours. Clinical Cancer Research, 12, 5207–5215.
Moheimani, N. R., Cord-Ruwisch, R., Raes, E., & Borowitzka, M. (2013). Non-destructive oil extraction from Botryococcus braunii (Chlorophyta). Journal of Applied Phycology, 25(6), 1653–1661.
Muller-Feuga, A. (2000). The role of microalgae in aquaculture: situation and trends. Journal of Applied Phycology, 12(3–5), 527–534.
Murphy, V., Hughes, H., & McLoughlin, P. (2008). Comparative study of chromium biosorption by red, green and brown seaweed biomass. Chemosphere, 70(6), 128–134.
Naidoo, K., Maneveldt, G., Ruck, K., & Bolton, J. J. (2006). A comparison of various seaweed-based diets and formulated feed on growth rate of abalone in a land-based aquaculture system. Journal of Applied Phycology, 18(3–5), 437–443.
Nakas, J. P., Schaedle, M., Parkinson, C. M., Coonley, C. E., & Tanenbaum, S. W. (1983). System development for linked-fermentation production of solvents from algal biomass. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 46(5), 1017–1023.
Naylor, R. L., Goldburg, R. J., Primavera, J. H., Kautsky, N., Beveridge, M. C. M., Clay, J., et al. (2000). Effect of aquaculture on world fish supplies. Nature, 405, 1017–1024.
Niu, J., Wang, G., Lin, X., & Zhou, B. (2007). Large-scale recovery of C-phycocyanin from Spirulina platensis using expanded bed adsorption chromatography. Journal of Chromatography B, 850, 267–276.
Olaizola, M. (2003). Commercial development of microalgal biotechnology: from the test tube to the marketplace. Biomolecular Engineering, 20, 459–466.
Pulz, O., & Gross, W. (2004). Valuable products from biotechnology of microalgae. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, 65(6), 635–648.
Radmer, R. J. (1996). Algal diversity and commercial algal products. BioScience, 46(4), 263–270.
Rasala, B., & Mayfield, S. P. (2014). Photosynthetic biomanufacturing in green algae; production of recombinant proteins for industrial, nutritional, and medical uses. Photosynthesis Research, 123, 227–239.
Rawdan, S. S. (1991). Sources of c20- polyunsaturated fatty acids for biotechnological use. Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology, 35, 421–430.
Rickards, R. W., Rothschild, J. M., Willis, A. C., de Chazal, N. M., Kirk, J., Kirk, K., et al. (1999). Calothrixins A and B, novel pentacyclic metabolites from Calothrix cyanobacteria with potent activity against malaria parasites and human cancer cells. Tetrahedron, 55, 13513.
Running, J. A., Huss, R. J., & Olson, P. T. (1994). Heterotrophic production of ascorbic acid by microalgae. Journal of Applied Phycology, 6(2), 99–104.
Sarada, R., Pillai, M. G., & Ravishankar, G. A. (1999). Phycocyanin from Spirulina sp.: Influence of processing of biomass on phycocyanin yield, analysis of efficacy of extraction methods and stability studies on phycocyanin. Process Biochemistry, 34, 795–801.
Sekar, S., & Chandramohan, M. (2008). Phycobiliproteins as a commodity: Trends in applied research, patents and commercialization. Journal of Applied Phycology, 20, 113–136.
Sheehan, J., Dunahay, T., Benemann, J. R., Roessler, P. (1998). A look back at the US Department of Energy’s Aquatic Species Program: Biodiesel from algae, National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
Simmons, T. L., Engene, N., Ureña, L. D., Romero, L. I., Ortega-Barría, E., Gerwick, L., & Gerwick, W. H. (2008). Viridamides A and B, lipodepsipeptides with antiprotozoal activity from the marine cyanobacterium Oscillatoria nigro-Viridis. Journal of Natural Products, 71, 1544–1550.
Simopoulos, A. P. (2002). Omega-3 fatty acids in inflammation and autoimmune diseases. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 26, 495–505.
Singh, S., Kate, B. N., & Banerjee, U. C. (2005). Bioactive compounds from cyanobacteria and microalgae: an overview. Critical Reviews in Biotechnology, 25(3), 73–95.
Spolaore, P., Joannis-Cassan, C., Duran, E., & Isambert, A. (2006). Commercial applications of microalgae. Journal of Bioscience and Bioengineering, 101(2), 87–96.
Tan, L. T. (2007). Bioactive natural products from marine cyanobacteria for drug discovery. Phytochemistry, 68, 954–979.
Thompson, G. A. (1996). Lipids and membrane function in green algae. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA)—Lipids and Lipid Metabolism, 130(1), 17–45.
Vaughan, V. C., Hassing, R. M., & Lewandowski, P. A. (2013). Marine polyunsaturated fatty acids and cancer therapy. British Journal of Cancer, 108, 486–492.
Walker, D. A. (2009). Biofuels, facts, fantasy, and feasibility. Journal of Applied Phycology, 21(5), 509–517.
Ward, O. P., & Singh, A. (2005). Omega-3/6 fatty acids: Alternative sources of production. Process Biochemistry, 40, 3627–3652.
Watanabe, T., & Nisizawa, K. (1984). The utilization of Wakame (Undaria pinnatifida) in Japan and manufacture of “haiboshi wakame” and some of its biochemical and physical properties. In C. J. Bird & M. A. Ragan, (eds.), Developments in Hydrobiology, Vol. 22, pp. 106–111.
Website: Oilgae (2014). Algae cosmetics. www.oilgae.com/nonfuelproducts/algaecosmetics.html. Accessed 1 August 2014.
Wen, Z. Y., & Chen, F. (2003) Heterotrophic production of eicosapentaenoic acid by microalgae. Biotechnology Advances, 21 (4): 273–294
Wijffels, R. H. (2007). Potential of sponges and microalgae for marine biotechnology. Trends in Biotechnology, 26(1), 26–31.
www.amazon.com. Accessed 5 August 2014.
www.made-in-china.com. Accessed 5 August 2014.
Yang, H., Lee, E., & Kim, H. (1997). Spirulina platensis inhibits anaphylactic reaction. Life Sciences, 61, 1237–1244.
Yongmanitchai, W., & Ward, O. P. (1989). Omega-3 fatty acids: Alternative sources of production. Process Biochemistry, 24, 117–125.
Yongmanitchai, W., & Ward, O. P. (1990). Growth of and omega-3 fatty acid production by Phaeodactylum tricornutum under different culture conditions. Applied and Environmental Microbiology, 57(2), 419–425.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Griffiths, M., Harrison, S.T.L., Smit, M., Maharajh, D. (2016). Major Commercial Products from Micro- and Macroalgae. In: Bux, F., Chisti, Y. (eds) Algae Biotechnology. Green Energy and Technology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12334-9_14
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12334-9_14
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-12333-2
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-12334-9
eBook Packages: EnergyEnergy (R0)