Chlorella pyrenoidosa

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 the freshwater green algae genus Chlorella. It occurs world wide. The species name pyrenoidosa refers to the presence of a prominent pyrenoid within the Chlorella chloroplast.

Uses

Chlorella pyrenoidosa has been used medicinally as a chelatory agent, for example to extract dioxins and dioxin-like compounds from the body.[1]

Possible medicinal uses include:

The pyrenoidosa specie have been used in traditional Chinese medicine. Also, chlorella pyrenoidosa contains chlorella growth factor or chlorella extract. Chlorella growth factor contains ß 1.3 glucan.[2]

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.

This algae was used in a 1961 study by Boeing to see about feasibility for the use of algae providing oxygen on space missions.[3]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Nakano, S; Takekoshi, H; Nakano, M (2007). "Chlorella (Chlorella pyrenoidosa) supplementation decreases dioxin and increases immunoglobulin a concentrations in breast milk.". Journal of Medicinal Food 10 (1): 134–42. doi:10.1089/jmf.2006.023. PMID 17472477.
  2. ↑ <healthychlorella>
  3. ↑ Bovee, H H; Pilgrim, A J; Sun, L S; Schubert, J E; Eng, T L; Benishek, B J. "Large Algal Systems" (PDF). Contrails. Illinois Institute of Technology. p. 12.