Photoautotrophic cultivation of microalgae

Microalgae strains produce a spectrum of biologically active compounds such as plant hormones (responsible for biostimulant activity) and antimicrobial compounds (promoting biopesticidal activity). Biomass and its extracts can therefore be used as an alternative to chemical pesticides and artificial fertilisers, the residues of which can cause environmental pollution. Since the cultivation of microalgae requires certain amounts of nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus and carbon, municipal wastewater contains high amounts of nitrogen (mainly in the form of ammonia), phosphorus and carbon (in the form of organic matter) can replace the expensive mineral fertilisers used for microalgae cultivation.  The team is now focusing on the investigation of microalgae with a specific fatty acid profile, as some polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) produced by microalgae may have biotechnological applications in food and feed production.

For cultivation, verification of bioactive production on a larger scale and cultivation of sufficient biomass for further analysis, we have a range of cultivation facilities at laboratory to pilot scale (plate and cylindrical photobioreactors, thin-film cascades and circulators), including a large-scale 90 m² unit.

In general the research topics of our team are as follows:

• Selection of microalgae strains for desired purposes
• Biochemical analysis of biomass (PUFA, pigments, etc.)
• Design and construction of cultivation systems
• Cultivation of selected strains of freshwater microalgae for biomass production and isolation of valuable compounds

If you are interested in these topics, please contact: prof. RNDr. Jiří Masojídek, CSc. (masojidekj@seznam.cz, +420 384 340 460) or Ing. Karolína Štěrbová, Ph.D. (sterbova@alga.cz, +420 384 340 463).