Potential applications of algal pigments in biology and industry
Autores
R. Prasanna1
, A. Sood1, A. Suresh2, S. Nayak1, B. D. Kaushik2
1Indian
Agricultural Research Institute Centre for Conservation and Utilisation of Blue-Green Algae New
Delhi 110012 India
2Indian Agricultural Research Institute Division of Microbiology New Delhi 110012 India
Resumen
A wide variety of pigments, like chlorophyll, carotenoids and phycobiliproteins, which exhibit colours
ranging from green, yellow, brown to red are present in algae. Increasing awareness of harmful effects of
synthetic dyes and inclination of society towards the usage of natural products, such as plant / microbial
based colours in food and cosmetics, has led to the exploitation of microalgae as a source of natural
colours. Algal pigments have great commercial value as natural colorants in nutraceutical, cosmetics and
pharmaceutical industry, besides their health benefits. Spirulina, Dunaliella capsules are now commonly
prescribed health foods for improving vitality and longevity of human beings. This review describes the
distribution, structure of these pigments in algae, with emphasis on specific techniques for extraction and
purification, along with different methods of biomass production and commercially feasible techniques
documented in literature. An overview of the industrial applications of these natural colouring agents in
diagnostics, food and cosmetics industry is also provided.
Palabras clave
algae, carotenoids, colorants, phycobilins, pigments, Spirulina
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