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Co-cultivation of Euglena gracilis and Pseudoalteromonas sp. MEBiC 03607 for paramylon production

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Abstract

Depending on the culture conditions, Euglena gracilis can produce a variety of macromolecules such as vitamins, lipids, proteins, and polysaccharides. In particular, the ability of E. gracilis to store a lot of β-glucans implies it has significant biotechnological potential. In this study, the growth of E. gracilis and its paramylon content were improved through co-cultivation with the bacterium Pseudoalteromonas sp. MEBiC 03607. To determine the optimal co-cultivation strategy, the effects of the algae-to-bacterial inoculum ratio and growth stage of E. gracilis were examined. Under optimal conditions, the growth of E. gracilis and its paramylon content were increased by more than 17 and 25%, respectively, as a direct result of the cultivation with bacteria. Through qRT-PCR analysis, it was confirmed that when the bacteria were inoculated, the expression of gene related to β-glucan synthase was increased, while the expression of wax ester synthase-related gene was decreased. This indicates that bacteria promote the synthesis of β-glucans of E. gracilis and inhibit the conversion of β-glucan to wax ester. These results demonstrate a novel approach to improve the growth of E. gracilis and its paramylon productivity.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by a grant from the Marine Biotechnology Program of the Korea Institute of Marine Science and Technology Promotion (KIMST), which is funded by the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries (MOF) (No.20170488). This research was also supported by a Korea University Grant and by the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) grant funded by the Korea government (MSIP) (2018M3A9F3055925 and 2019R1A2C2087449).

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  1. Division of Environmental Science & Ecological Engineering, Korea University, Seoul, 02841, Republic of Korea

    Min Seo Jeon, Sang-Il Han, Jee Young Kim & Yoon-E Choi

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  1. Min Seo Jeon
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  2. Sang-Il Han
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  3. Jee Young Kim
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  4. Yoon-E Choi
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Correspondence to Yoon-E Choi.

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Jeon, M.S., Han, SI., Kim, J.Y. et al. Co-cultivation of Euglena gracilis and Pseudoalteromonas sp. MEBiC 03607 for paramylon production. J Appl Phycol 32, 3679–3686 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-020-02215-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-020-02215-z

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