Detection of polysaccharides from local algae in fresh water
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.32792/utq/utjsci/v12i1.1374Keywords:
Cladophora, Carrageenan, Agar, Alginate.Abstract
-The research focused on identifying the polysaccharide composition of Cladophora algae species collected from the Tigris River for carrageenan, agar and alginate analysis. The biochemical diversity of Cladophora green algae was demonstrated through the discovery of compounds traditionally linked to red and brown marine algae. HPLC analysis provided detailed information about polysaccharide distribution through its measurement of polysaccharide content.
The analysis of Cladophora revealed that carrageenan and agar existed at 1.21% and 1.25% levels while alginate reached 1.46%. The discovery of carrageenan in green algae contradicts the common belief that this substance exists only within rhodophyta species. The polysaccharide synthesis and accumulation process in the Tigris River appears to be influenced by the river's unique freshwater environment together with its low salinity and fluctuating nutrient levels and seasonal temperature changes. The main polysaccharide identified in the sample was agar which suggested conserved biosynthetic pathways and alginate presented industrial value despite its minimal concentration. The two unknown polysaccharide peaks at positions 3 and 10 played a crucial role in establishing the biochemical profile of the sample.
The research shows how environmental conditions together with methodological approaches affect polysaccharide production. The minimal amounts of carrageenan, agar and alginate suggest that Cladophora could serve as a supplementary resource instead of the primary one. The discovery of different unknown polysaccharides creates new research opportunities for industry to explore potential new compounds.
Received: 2025-04-09
Revised: 2025-05-08
Accepted: 2025-07-03
References
M. Arora and D. Sahoo, "Green algae," The algae world, pp. 91-120, 2015.
A. A. Saber, A. A. El-Refaey, H. Saber, P. Singh, S. J. van Vuuren, and M. Cantonati, "Cyanoprokaryotes and algae: classification and habitats," in Handbook of Algal Biofuels, ed: Elsevier, 2022, pp. 1-38.
I. Michalak and B. Messyasz, "Concise review of Cladophora spp.: macroalgae of commercial interest," Journal of Applied phycology, vol. 33, pp. 133-166, 2021.
A. V. Prazukin, E. V. Anufriieva, and N. V. Shadrin, "Biomass of Cladophora (Chlorophyta, Cladophorales) is a promising resource for agriculture with high benefits for economics and the environment," Aquaculture International, vol. 32, pp. 3637-3673, 2024.
B. Lor, M. Zohn, M. J. Meade, A. B. Cahoon, and K. M. Manoylov, "A Morphological and Molecular Analysis of a Bloom of the Filamentous Green Alga Pithophora," Water, vol. 13, p. 760, 2021.
M. K. Jasem, A.-A. Merai, and A. A. Nizam, "Characterization and in vitro antibacterial activity of sulfated polysaccharides from freshwater alga Cladophora crispata," Access Microbiology, vol. 5, p. 000537. v5, 2023.
M. Szekalska, A. Puciłowska, E. Szymańska, P. Ciosek, and K. Winnicka, "Alginate: current use and future perspectives in pharmaceutical and biomedical applications," International journal of polymer science, vol. 2016, p. 7697031, 2016.
D. S. Putri, N. Cokrowati, D. P. Lestari, and A. Ahmad, "Growth and Content of Seaweed Carrageenan Kappaphycus alvarezii Cultivated at Bottom-off method," Jurnal Biologi Tropis, vol. 22, pp. 565-573, 2022.
B. Messyasz, B. Leska, J. Fabrowska, M. Pikosz, E. Roj, A. Cieslak, et al., "Biomass of freshwater Cladophora as a raw material for agriculture and the cosmetic industry," Open Chemistry, vol. 13, p. 000010151520150124, 2015.
R. Rupert, K. F. Rodrigues, V. Y. Thien, and W. T. L. Yong, "Carrageenan from Kappaphycus alvarezii (Rhodophyta, Solieriaceae): Metabolism, structure, production, and application," Frontiers in Plant Science, vol. 13, p. 859635, 2022.
O. Olatunji, Aquatic biopolymers: understanding their industrial significance and environmental implications: Springer, 2020.
M. Ciancia, P. V. Fernández, and F. Leliaert, "Diversity of sulfated polysaccharides from cell walls of coenocytic green algae and their structural relationships in view of green algal evolution," Frontiers in plant science, vol. 11, p. 554585, 2020.
K. S. Kumar, S. Kumari, K. Singh, and P. Kushwaha, "Influence of seasonal variation on chemical composition and nutritional profiles of macro‐and microalgae," Recent advances in micro and macroalgal processing: food and health perspectives, pp. 14-71, 2021.
B. Mohanty, S. M. Majedi, S. Pavagadhi, S. H. Te, C. Y. Boo, K. Y.-H. Gin, et al., "Effects of light and temperature on the metabolic profiling of two habitat-dependent bloom-forming cyanobacteria," Metabolites, vol. 12, p. 406, 2022.
F. Roth, N. RAdecker, S. Carvalho, C. M. Duarte, V. Saderne, A. Anton, et al., "High summer temperatures amplify functional differences between coral‐and algae‐dominated reef communities," Ecology, vol. 102, p. e03226, 2021.
A. Martín-del-Campo, J. A. Fermín-Jiménez, V. V. Fernández-Escamilla, Z. Y. Escalante-García, M. E. Macías-Rodríguez, and Y. Estrada-Girón, "Improved extraction of carrageenan from red seaweed (Chondracantus canaliculatus) using ultrasound-assisted methods and evaluation of the yield, physicochemical properties and functional groups," Food Science and Biotechnology, vol. 30, pp. 901-910, 2021.
M. M. Yaqoob, I. Somlyai, C. Berta, I. Bácsi, A. N. Al-Tayawi, K. K. Al-Ahmady, et al., "The impacts of land use and seasonal effects on phytoplankton taxa and physical-chemical variables in the Tigris River within the City of Mosul," Water, vol. 15, p. 1062, 2023.
H. Shihab, A. A. H. Mohammed, and A. Kannah, "Environmental factor and their impact on the abundance of aquatic plants in Iraq," Journal for Research in Applied Sciences and Biotechnology, vol. 2, pp. 58-65, 2023.
A. Shalvina, A. De Ramon N’Yeurt, J. Lako, and S. Piovano, "Effects of selected environmental conditions on growth and carrageenan quality of laboratory-cultured Kappaphycus alvarezii (Rhodophyta) in Fiji, South Pacific," Journal of Applied Phycology, vol. 34, pp. 1033-1043, 2022.
A. Kadhim and M. S. Jaafar, "Estimate Raw Water Salinity for the Tigris River for a Long Time Using a Mathematical Model," in IOP Conference Series: Earth and Environmental Science, 2023, p. 012037.
C. B. Pasqualetti, M. A. M. Carvalho, A. Mansilla, M. Avila, P. Colepicolo, and N. S. Yokoya, "Variations on primary metabolites of the carrageenan-producing red algae Sarcopeltis skottsbergii from Chile and Sarcopeltis antarctica from Antarctic Peninsula," Frontiers in Marine Science, vol. 10, p. 1151332, 2023.
I. Siddique, "Unveiling the power of high-performance liquid chromatography: Techniques, applications, and innovations," European Journal of Advances in Engineering and Technology, vol. 8, pp. 79-84, 2021.
A. M. M. da Silva, F. S. Almeida, M. F. da Silva, R. Goldbeck, and A. C. K. Sato, "How do pH and temperature influence extraction yield, physicochemical, functional, and rheological characteristics of brewer spent grain protein concentrates?," Food and Bioproducts Processing, vol. 139, pp. 34-45, 2023.
A. Chevenier, D. Jouanneau, and E. Ficko-Blean, "Carrageenan biosynthesis in red algae: A review," The Cell Surface, vol. 9, p. 100097, 2023.
D. Chavda, D. Dutta, K. N. Patel, A. K. Rathod, W. Kulig, and M. Manna, "Revealing the key structural features promoting the helical conformation in algal polysaccharide carrageenan in solution," Carbohydrate Polymers, vol. 331, p. 121901, 2024.
P. Sarkar, T. K. Bandyopadhyay, K. Gopikrishna, O. N. Tiwari, B. Bhunia, and M. Muthuraj, "Algal carbohydrates: Sources, biosynthetic pathway, production, and applications," Bioresource Technology, p. 131489, 2024.
Z. Hyderi, A. Kannappan, and A. V. Ravi, "The Multifaceted Applications of Seaweed and Its Derived Compounds in Biomedicine and Nutraceuticals: A Promising Resource for Future," Phytochemical Analysis, 2024.
A. K. Maurya, H. A. Ahmed, A. DeWitt, A. A. Shami, S. K. Misra, and V. H. Pomin, "Structure and Binding Properties to Blood Co-Factors of the Least Sulfated Galactan Found in the Cell Wall of the Red Alga Botryocladia occidentalis," Marine Drugs, vol. 22, p. 81, 2024.
S. R. Vásquez, J. C. A. De La Cruz, O. A. Zeballos, and F. H. A. Ortiz, "VARIACIÓN EN EL RENDIMIENTO Y VISCOSIDAD DEL Κ-CARRAGENINA DE Chondracanthus chamissoi Y Mazzaella canaliculata DURANTE INVIERNO Y VERANO," in Anales Científicos, 2023, pp. 149-164.
S. Landi, G. Santini, E. Vitale, G. Di Natale, G. Maisto, C. Arena, et al., "Photosynthetic, molecular and ultrastructural characterization of toxic effects of zinc in Caulerpa racemosa indicate promising bioremediation potentiality," Plants, vol. 11, p. 2868, 2022.
S. Padmesh and A. Singh, "Agars: Properties and applications," Polysaccharides: properties and applications, pp. 75-93, 2021.
B. Reshma, T. Aavula, V. Narasimman, S. Ramachandran, M. M. Essa, and M. W. Qoronfleh, "Antioxidant and antiaging properties of agar obtained from brown seaweed Laminaria digitata (Hudson) in D‐galactose‐induced swiss albino mice," Evidence‐Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, vol. 2022, p. 7736378, 2022.
D. Pathiraja, "Bioactive sugars from red macroalgae: structure, preparation, and applications," 2024.
N. Nakamura‐Gouvea, C. Alves‐Lima, L. F. Benites, C. Iha, V. Maracaja‐Coutinho, V. Aliaga‐Tobar, et al., "Insights into agar and secondary metabolite pathways from the genome of the red alga Gracilaria domingensis (Rhodophyta, Gracilariales)," Journal of Phycology, vol. 58, pp. 406-423, 2022.
K. Anjana and K. Arunkumar, "Brown algae biomass for fucoxanthin, fucoidan and alginate; update review on structure, biosynthesis, biological activities and extraction valorisation," International Journal of Biological Macromolecules, p. 135632, 2024.
A. B. Petersen, A. Tøndervik, M. Gaardløs, H. Ertesvåg, H. Sletta, and F. L. Aachmann, "Mannuronate C-5 epimerases and their use in alginate modification," Essays in Biochemistry, vol. 67, pp. 615-627, 2023.
Downloads
Published
License
Copyright (c) 2025 University of Thi-Qar Journal of Science

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.