Microalgae as a potential source of single-cell proteins. A review

Abstract

Introduction. Microalgae can be considered as one of the most reliable natural sources of nutrients and other valuable substances that could satisfy the growing needs in food and energy. In this review article, the global potential for the use of microalgae and the protein content of a number of microalgae is examined with a brief description of the microalgae species. Literature. Despite the high protein content and the presence of other valuable substances in microalgal biomass, microalgae mass production is still at its embryonic level. Microalgal proteins exhibit good nutritional, functional and technofunctional properties when compared to some conventional protein concentrates. Conclusions. There is therefore a need for the mass production of microalgae to be boosted by public and private institutions in order to avoid protein shortages.

Extracting protein from microalgae (Tetraselmis chuii) for proteome analysis

“…These phytoplanktonic organisms contribute up to 50% of all aquatic productivity. Their high protein content (40-70% dry weight) makes them highly interesting as a potential source of sustainable, green protein for human nutrition, animal feed, aquaculture and to produce functional foods and bioactive peptides [3] , [4] , [5] , [6] , [7] , [8] , [9] . Microalgae proteins are currently exploited by industry as natural crude extracts or partially purified extracts [ 10 , 11 ].…”

Pilot-Scale Cultivation of the Snow Alga Chloromonas typhlos in a Photobioreactor

“…However, a comparison is difficult to obtain due to insufficient information or the different cultivation techniques used ( Teoh et al, 2013 ; Idrissi Abdelkhalek et al, 2016 ; Hulatt et al, 2017 ; Onuma et al, 2018 ; Morales-Sánchez et al, 2020 ; Peng et al, 2021 ). Compared to commercially cultivated algae, the production and growth rate is lower and needs to be improved to be competitive ( de Vree et al, 2015 ; Barka and Blecker, 2016 ; Benedetti et al, 2018 ; Darvehei et al, 2018 ; Metsoviti et al, 2019 ).…”

An overview of microalgae biomass as a sustainable aquaculture feed ingredient: food security and circular economy

“…Vegans and vegetarians have few options since the majority of plant-based proteins do not meet the EAA profile. To overcome this problem, an alternative source with a balanced protein profile and low cost is required [ 113 ]. Protein digestibility of the microalgal protein (S. platensis protein concentration) ranges from 87.5 to 97.8% [ 114 ].…”

“…Due to their high content of EAA, microalgae are considered one of the best vegan protein sources. It is well known that microalgae contain EAAs and non-NEAAs, both of which have health benefits [ 113 ]. NEAAs include amino acids, proline, arginine, glutamic acid, glycine, aspartic acid, tyrosine, cysteine, serine, and glutamic acid are a few examples.…”