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Heterotrophic growth of microalgae: metabolic aspects

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Abstract

Microalgae are considered photoautotrophic organisms, however several species have been found living in environments where autotrophic metabolism is not viable. Heterotrophic cultivation, i.e. cell growth and propagation with the use of an external carbon source under dark conditions, can be used to study the metabolic aspects of microalgae that are not strictly related to photoautotrophic growth and to obtain high value products. This manuscript reviews studies related to the metabolic aspects of heterotrophic grow of microalga. From the physiological and metabolic perspective, the screening of microalgal strains in different environments and the development of molecular and metabolic engineering tools, will lead to an increase in the number of known microalgae species that growth under strict heterotrophic conditions and the variety of carbon sources used by these microorganisms.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Shirley Ainsworth for providing support for this review. This work was supported by the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), Grant DGAPA/PAPIIT/UNAM IT200312, and Aeropuertos y Servicios Auxiliares—Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (ASA-CONACyT) Grant 2014-244329. DMS held a scholarship (Number 170123) from CONACyT-México.

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  1. Daniela Morales-Sánchez

    Present address: Department of Biochemistry, College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, 1901 Vine Street, Lincoln, NE, 68588-0664, USA

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  1. Departamento de Ingeniería Celular y Biocatálisis, Instituto de Biotecnología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Apdo. Postal 510-3, 62250, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico

    Daniela Morales-Sánchez, Oscar A. Martinez-Rodriguez & Alfredo Martinez

  2. College of Science and Technology, Bellevue University, 1000 Galvin Road South, Bellevue, NE, 68005, USA

    John Kyndt

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  1. Daniela Morales-Sánchez
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Correspondence to Alfredo Martinez.

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Morales-Sánchez, D., Martinez-Rodriguez, O.A., Kyndt, J. et al. Heterotrophic growth of microalgae: metabolic aspects. World J Microbiol Biotechnol 31, 1–9 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11274-014-1773-2

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