These compounds have received much attention from researchers and companies in recent years due to their potential applications in different life science fields. Microalgae are a natural source of highly interesting biologically active compounds. This untapped diversity results in potential applications for these microorganisms in several biotechnological fields, such as the production of biocompounds used in food, medicine, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals and even in the energy industry. Of these, only and a few are industrially cultivated. Among the thousands of species of microalgae believed to exist, only a small number of them are retained in collections around the world, and it is estimated that only a few hundreds are investigated for compounds present in their biomass. Microalgae are a group of heterogeneous microorganisms that have a great biodiversity of colors, shapes, and cell characteristics, and their manipulation is encompassed by the field of marine biotechnology. Microalgae with Potential for Obtaining Bioactive Compounds In this context, the aim of this review is to discuss bioactive metabolites produced by microalgae for possible applications in the life sciences.Ģ. Further research should be conducted with these bioactive compounds to verify their beneficial effects for humans, their degradability when released into the environment, and their effects when used in animals. In most microalgae, the bioactive compounds are accumulated in the biomass however, in some cases, these metabolites are excreted into the medium these are known as exometabolites.īioactive metabolites of microalgal origin are of special interest in the development of new products for medical, pharmaceutical, cosmetic, and food industries. Many of these compounds (cyanovirin, oleic acid, linolenic acid, palmitoleic acid, vitamin E, B12, β-carotene, phycocyanin, lutein, and zeaxanthin) have antimicrobial antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory capacities, with the potential for the reduction and prevention of diseases. Such compounds can present antifungal, antiviral, antialgal, antienzymatic, or antibiotic actions. īioactive compounds of microalgal origin can be sourced directly from primary metabolism, such as proteins, fatty acids, vitamins, and pigments, or can be synthesized from secondary metabolism. Microalgae have been described as rich sources of various biocompounds of commercial interest. Screening of extracts or isolation of metabolites from different microalgae is a common method for determining the biological activity of these components. Several studies have been conducted to investigate the products of microalgal metabolism not only to understand its nature but also to search for substances with possible applications to humans in different fields of interest. Thus, the manipulation of the culture conditions, or the presence or absence of certain nutrients, stimulates the biosynthesis of specific compounds. Microalgal metabolism reacts to changes in the external environment with changes in its intracellular environment. Approximately 40% of global photosynthesis is due to these microorganisms. Microalgae are photosynthetic organisms that play a key role in aquatic ecosystems. The so-called green algae are so named because of the presence of chlorophyll a and chlorophyll b in the same proportions as in higher plants. Cyanobacteria and bacteria have very similar structural characteristics however, they are classified as microalgae because they contain chlorophyll a and compounds related to photosynthesis.
The term microalgae includes prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms. Microalgae are unicellular microorganisms that grow in fresh or salt water and have varied shapes with a diameter or length of approximately 3–10 μm.
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