Coordination of growth and cell cycle progression in green algae

IVANOV, Ivan

Within the past century microalgae have gained importance both as model organisms in cell cycle research and as a biotechnological platform for the production of a variety of economically important compounds. This thesis examines the coordination of growth and cell cycle progression in green algae and attempts to explore the biotechnological relevance of some of the findings. Furthermore, the applicability of confocal Raman microscopy for both quantitative and qualitative analysis of storage biomolecules during the course of the cell cycle of Desmodesmus quadricauda is also investigated. Temperature and light shift experiments showed that there is no direct correlation between growth and cell cycle progression in D. quadricauda. Further analysis revealed that supraoptimal temperature has a profound effect on the cell cycle of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii causing a block in cell division, increase of cell size and over accumulation of starch. Starch production through supraoptimal temperature was successfully demonstrated in pilot scale experiments, however it was estimated that light availability within the culture poses a major limiting factor. Confocal Raman microscopy was successfully applied for the quantitative and qualitative analysis of storage biomolecules including starch, lipids, polyphosphates and guanine.

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