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Growth medium standardization and thermotolerance study of the freshwater microalga Acutodesmus dimorphus—a potential strain for biofuel production

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Abstract

Microalgal biomass seems to be one of the potential alternative feedstocks for the production of various types of biofuel. In the present study, first of all, suitable growth media and harvesting time were determined for the freshwater chlorophyte microalga Acutodesmus dimorphus. Cultivation of A. dimorphus in BG-11 medium for 15 days resulted in the highest biomass productivity with 24.60 % lipid and 22.78 % carbohydrate contents. Further, thermotolerance property of A. dimorphus was evaluated by heat stressing the cells at 45 °C and 50 °C up to 24 h and determining the cell mortality and pigment composition along with lipid and carbohydrate contents. Chlorophyll and carotenoid contents of cells significantly increased after heat stress at 45 °C. Increasing the heat stress from 8 to 24 h increased the dead cells by 3–4 % at both temperatures, which shows the thermotolerance of A. dimorphus. Lipid content of 27 % and carbohydrate content of 26–28 % even after 24 h of heat stress at 45 and 50 °C suggest A. dimorphus as a potential feedstock for biofuel production.

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Acknowledgments

CSIR-CSMCRI Registration Number: 096/2015. KC and IP acknowledge CSC-0203 for their funding support. RM, CP, and TG acknowledge CSIR for awarding senior research fellowship. KC, RM, CP, and TG acknowledge AcSIR for Ph.D. enrolment. The continuous support from Dr. Arvind Kumar, DC, SMC, and the entire staff of the division is gratefully acknowledged. The authors also thank Dr. Parimal Paul, ADCIF, CSIR-CSMCRI for providing the necessary instrumentation facility.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Salt and Marine Chemicals, CSIR-Central Salt & Marine Chemicals Research Institute, Bhavnagar, 364002, India

    Kaumeel Chokshi, Imran Pancha, Rahulkumar Maurya, Chetan Paliwal, Tonmoy Ghosh & Sandhya Mishra

  2. Academy of Scientific & Innovative Research (AcSIR), CSIR-Central Salt & Marine Chemicals Research Institute, Bhavnagar, 364002, India

    Kaumeel Chokshi, Rahulkumar Maurya, Chetan Paliwal, Tonmoy Ghosh, Arup Ghosh & Sandhya Mishra

  3. Division of Plant Omics, CSIR-Central Salt & Marine Chemicals Research Institute, Bhavnagar, 364002, India

    Arup Ghosh

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  1. Kaumeel Chokshi
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  2. Imran Pancha
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  3. Rahulkumar Maurya
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  4. Chetan Paliwal
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  5. Tonmoy Ghosh
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  7. Sandhya Mishra
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Correspondence to Sandhya Mishra.

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Chokshi, K., Pancha, I., Maurya, R. et al. Growth medium standardization and thermotolerance study of the freshwater microalga Acutodesmus dimorphus—a potential strain for biofuel production. J Appl Phycol 28, 2687–2696 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-016-0826-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-016-0826-3

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