Centre Algatech

Institute of Michrobiology, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic

Photoautotrophic cultivation

Laboratory of Anoxygenic Phototrophs

Laboratory of algal biotechnology

Jiří Masojídek's group

Photoautotrophic cultivation

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Photoautotrophic cultivation of microalgae

Microalgae strains often produce a spectrum of biologically active compounds, such as plant hormones (responsible for biostimulating activity) and antimicrobial compounds (promoting biopesticide activity); thus the biomass and its extracts can be applied as an alternative replacing chemical compounds and artificial fertilizers which residues may cause environmental pollution. Due to growth requirement for macronutrients, urban wastewaters containing vast amounts of macronutrients , i.e. nitrogen (mainly in the form of ammonium) and phosphorus and carbon (in the form of organic matter) can utilized, replacing expensive fertilizers used for microalgae cultivation (main objective of the EU Horizon 2020 SABANA project). In this way, significant reduction of the cultivation costs can be achieved. We have also focused on the exploration of microalgae with specific fatty acid profile since certain polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) produced by microalgae are crucial in aquaculture for juvenile fish development. PUFAs incorporation can be accomplished through the food chain in a microalgae-rotifers-larvae feeding sequence (main objective of the Interreg project Algae4Fish). Recently, mesophilic microalgae – due to adaptation to extreme environments – have also come to our research focus for their potential biotechnological application (production of fatty acid, pigments etc.).

Our research team further focuses on phototrophic cultivation of microalgae as concerns the relationship between photosynthetic activity, growth rate and biomass productivity. We operate a number of cultivation units to grow microalgae from laboratory to pilot scale – flat-plate and annular-column photobioreactors, outdoor thin-layer cascades and raceway ponds, including large-scale units with an area of 750 m². Thus, cultivation regimes of selected strains are studied under various conditions.

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

Selection and characterization of strains of microalgae for agriculture and aquaculture use
Design and construction of cultivation systems
Monitoring photosynthesis of microalgae cultures to optimize growth regimes in various photobioreactors
Pilot and large-scale cultivation of selected microalgae strains

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

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