Development of a 5-aminolevulinic acid feeding strategy capable of enhancing Haematococcus pluvialis biomass, astaxanthin, and fatty acid yields

Abstract

Effective inducers play essential roles in the regulation of cell growth and astaxanthin production in Haematococcus pluvialis. Here, a novel 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) feeding strategy was developed and found to enhance H. pluvialis biomass, fatty acid, and astaxanthin yields. Specifically, 5-ALA feeding (4 μM) on day 1 caused respective 23.8 %, 24.8 %, and 20.3 % increases in biomass, fatty acid, and astaxanthin yields. The observed enhancement of biomass accumulation associated with the provision of 5-ALA during the early stages of growth was attributable to enhanced photosynthetic carbon assimilation. This increased biomass accumulation, in turn, contributed to the measured increases in both fatty acid and astaxanthin yields. Overall, these results provide new insight into the importance of photosynthetic carbon assimilation as a determinant of biomass accumulation and a regulator of both fatty acid and astaxanthin production, while offering an effective strategy capable of accelerating astaxanthin production by H. pluvialis in commercial agricultural contexts.