Effect of salinity on the biochemical composition of the alga Botryococcus braunii Kütz IPPAS H-252

摘要

The effect of 0.3 and 0.7 M NaCl on biomass yield, total nitrogen content, intracellular lipid content, and fatty acid profile of the lipids of the alga Botryococcus braunii IPPAS H-252 in different phases of the culture cycle was studied. The presence of sodium chloride in the medium inhibited the growth of algal cells for the first 3 days of the experiment, causing a decrease in total nitrogen, enhanced synthesis of triacylglycerols, and considerable changes in the lipid fatty acid profile: decreases in polyenoic acid contents (from 68.34% to 29.38% and 12.8%) and proportions of long-chain saturated acids (from 0.53% to 5.3% and 14.13% of the total fatty acids) at 0.3 M NaCl and 0.7 M NaCl, respectively. In later phases of the culture, at 0.3 M NaCl, the content of polyenoic acids rose to the values characteristic of the active growth phase of this alga. At 0.7 M NaCl, the proportion of polyenoic acids grew less significantly, but biomass concentration and total nitrogen increased, similarly to the experiment with 0.3 M NaCl.