FATTY ACID PROFILES OF MANGROVE MICROALGAE AND THEIR POTENTIAL USE AS FOOD

TẠP CHÍ KHOA HỌC VÀ CƠNG NGHỆ Tập 48, số 2A, 2010 Tr 609-614 FATTY ACID PROFILES OF MANGROVE MICROALGAE AND THEIR POTENTIAL USE AS FOOD LE THỊ PHUONG HOA, NGUYEN THỊ HOAI HA, DANG NGOC QUANG, NGUYEN HOANG TRI ASTRACT _ Microalgae play an important part in primary production in mangrove ecosystem Many of them possess high content of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) as well as other compounds of potential interest to the food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries Three diatom strains were successfully purified from Giaothuy mangrove forest and taxonomically identified as Amphiprora alata, Gyrosigma limosum and Melosira nummuloides according to morphological properties and 18S rDNA sequence analysis Predominant fatty acids in three strains were 16:0, 16:In-7 and 14:0, as similar as other diatoms They contained high concentration of unsaturated acids (approximately 45-52% of total fatty acids), among which PUFAs accounted for 30% - 50% Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), which is a precursor in prostagladin synthesis, was at considerable level (around 9% of total fatty acids).-A alata also possessed a proportion of arachidonic acid (AA), 7.9% and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), 5.2%, suggesting a quality food resource in marine food web and potential for use in food production Keyword: fatty acid, mangrove microalgae, diatom INTRODUCTION Microalgae and macroalgae have been utilized by man for hundreds of years Microalgae are a unique source of high-value compounds such as carotenoids, astaxanthin, proteins, polysaccharides, vitamins and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) that can be used for the production of nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, animal feed additives, and cosmetics [3] The nutrition value including fatty acid composition of microalgae has been the subject of many intensive researches [2 - 4, 6, 8, 11] This is based on especially those from marine contain large amounts of to be efficiently essential in many animals and human from precursor fatty acids such as alpha linolenic acid the fact that some species of microalgae high-quality PUFAs, which are supposed due to their limited ability to synthesize [4, 6] Microalgae represent also one of the most promising EPA producers, as the purification of this PUFA from fish oil involves many drawbacks [3] Over the last four decades, several hundred microalgae species have been tested as food, but probably less than 20 have gained widespread use in aquaculture [3] Mangrove forests provide not only important ecological functions but also habitats for the high biodiversity of marine and terrestrial organisms, among which microalgae are supposed to provide an important energy source in the ecosystem food webs In this study, microalgae species from mangrove forest in Xuanthuy National Park were isolated, identified and characterized the fatty acid components in an attempt to seek for good source in food production 609