Impact of the Chemical Mutagenesis on Biomass and Productivity of some Micro Green Algae

Abstract

Mutant microalgae Nanochloropsis oculata. and Chlorella spincluded in this study exhibited a high potential for energetic lipid storageas well as high growth rates comparing to the un mutants (standard), therefore,considered promising candidates for advancing the biofuel production. Inaddition to the exponentially increase in biomass carbohydrates, proteins andfatty acids remarkably increased after these strains were mutated by ethylmethane sulphonate (EMS), while total lipids decreased. Biochemicalcompositional analysis was carried out by using gas chromatography to find outconcentrations of five major fatty acids: Palmitic acid, Lenolenic acid,Stearic acid, Oleic acid and Linoleic acid. In mutant N. oculata and Chlorellasp.  Lenolenic acid is the fatty acidwith high percentage (11.7 and 4.8 %) respectively compared with un- mutant (0.241and 1.824) %. Five fatty acids were selected to assess effect of the mutation,which revealed that initial concentrations of all the fatty acids before themutation were multiplied about 48, 16, 14, 7 and 6 fold of Lenolenic, Palmitic,Oleic, Stearic and Linoleic acids respectively in N. oculata, while slightlychanges occurred in the concentrations of Chlorella sp fatty acids.