| Chlorella pyrenoidosa | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Division: | Chlorophyta |
| Class: | Trebouxiophyceae |
| Order: | Chlorellales |
| Family: | Chlorellaceae |
| Genus: | Chlorella |
| Species: | Chlorella pyrenoidosa Chick, 1903 |
Chlorella pyrenoidosa is a species of fresh water green algae. It has been used medicinally as a chelatory agent, for example to extract mercury from the body. However there is no scientific proof of this.
Possible medicinal uses include:
It occurs world wide. The species name pyrenoidosa refers to the presence of a prominent pyrenoid within the Chlorella chloroplast. This species has been used in traditional Chinese medicine.
Boraas (1983) reported a mutation in a population of Chlorella pyrenoidosa kept in his lab as a food stock for a population of flagellates. Due to a malfunction of his equipment some of the flagellates got in the Chlorella's tank. this caused a mutation from unicellular to Multicellular.