Acronym REFINECYANO
Category
Marine Biotechnology
Title Valorization of cyanobacteria pigments through the application of the biorefinery concept Programme Nat. Programme (supported by ESIF)
Instrument (FP6)
Contact Type (FP7)
Strand (Interreg)
NA
Theme (FP7)
Activity Area (FP6)
Regional Area (Interreg)
Action (COST)
NA
Specific Programme (FP7)
NA
Funding source National-European Coordinator Sónia Ventura Coordinator email NA
Coordinator institution
NA
Institutions involved
CESAM - Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies (Portugal) ,
Start year 2018 End year 2021 Funding (€) € 233,991 Website https://www.cesam-la.pt/projetos/refinecyano-valorizacao-de-pigmentos-de-cianobacterias-pela-aplicacao-do-conceito-de-biorefinaria/ Summary The environmental management of cyanobacterial blooms, which are responsible for eutrophication and potential environmental and human health risks, is currently a problem. In this project, a new dimension of environmental management is proposed and explored by the commercial valorization of this biomass, a strategy already applied to other species by the research team of this project. Despite the recognized potential of cyanobacteria as a source of bioactive compounds, their exploitation is limited. In addition, the lack of fundamental knowledge indicative of the biotechnological potential of each species is another important factor. In fact, the concentration of pigments in cyanobacteria is species-specific (often strain-specific within the same species) and depends on various environmental factors, meaning that pigment production can be greatly optimized. The genus Anabaena will be investigated in this project, considering it to be one of the most promising with regard to the production/accumulation of pigments, such as phycobiliproteins, chlorophyll and carotenoids, which are applicable in aquaculture, pharmacology, nutraceuticals and cosmetics (application in anti-aging and human health products). Despite the high biotechnological and commercial potential of these pigments, their industrial exploitation is limited. The low productivity, high complexity, high costs and low efficiency of downstream processes are determining factors, as they compromise the economic viability of the currently implemented processes. As a way to overcome these limitations, the REFINECYANO project will explore new downstream strategies for the recovery and purification of these pigments. Aqueous solutions of alternative solvents, namely ionic liquids and surfactants will be studied. These will be applied as solvents in the extraction of pigments from fresh biomass and as phase formers in the preparation of Two-Phase Aqueous Systems and Two-Phase Aqueous Micellar Systems. For the industrialization of the developed technology, the purification of each pigment in continuous regime will be studied by the use of Centrifugal Partition Chromatography and a Continuous Tubular Separator. Natural blooms (multi-specific) in addition to mono-specific crops will also be exploited as raw material, thus contributing to the environmental management of these species with invasive potential. The suitability of purified extracts and pigments for application in the cosmetic and nutraceutical industries will be explored, by analyzing their cytotoxic activity, and antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-UV potential. This stage will definitely support the valorization of the Anabaena species by the development of innovative downstream processes applied to the recovery of its pigments. Under the concept of biorefinery, the remaining biomass will be exploited as a stimulator of plant growth, in the formulation of a fertilizer with specific application in the sports sector.
Keywords
Nutraceutical substances;
Bacteria;
Cosmetics;
Bioprospecting;
Human health;
Marine Region
0
NA
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