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Phosphate ions is one of the chemical pollutants that enters to the surface and underground water through municipal, industrial and agricultural wastewater. The aim of this study is to investigate the removal of phosphate from wastewater by Chlorella vulgaris and Spirulina platensis. To this purpose the microalgae added to 350 ml wastewater in lab experiment. In order to evaluate the effect of phosphorus removal, the experiment were performed during 8 days. The initial dry weight of Chlorella vulgaris and Spirulina platensis in wastewater samples were 0.02 and 0.05 g/L, respectively. During the growth period, the concentration of phosphate in aqueous solution were measured on days 1st, 4th, 6th and 8th by APHA standard methods through Bio spec-1601 spectrophotometer. Based on the results, the percentage of phosphorus removal by Chlorella vulgaris was 40.65, 38.0124.45 and 72.21 , and by Spirulina platensis was 20.13, 20.01, 10.44 and 42.79 for days 1 to 4, 4 to 6, 6 to 8 and 1 to 8, respectively. The final dry weight of Chlorella vulgaris and Spirulina platensis in wastewater samples were 3.93 and 1.93 g/L, respectively. From this study it can be concluded that the algae are able to remove phosphorus from wastewater and Chlorella vulgaris has higher ability of reducing phosphorus from waste water, and could be good candidate to reduce the phosphate in wastewater treatment.

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CO2 biosequestration by using algae is one of the promising and environmentally friend methods. The present study aimed at investigating the ability of Spirulina platensis in terms of growth and carbon dioxide fixation under different salinity levels and also variety of CO2 concentration. To this purpose, analysis of growth parameters including biomass productivity, specific growth rate and carbon fixation rate during the 8-day periods by maintaining the same conditions, under 3 salinity levels (3, 1500 and 34000 µs/cm) and four CO2 concentration (0.03%, 2%, 5% and 10%) were performed. this test have been performed in flat plate reactors by using pure stock of Spirulina platensis culturing in Zarrouk's medium . in all cultures, microalgae showed the highest specific growth rate during the first four days, as 0.35, 0.23, 0.24 and 0.24 d-1 in natural water, respectively. The highest carbon fixation rate and biomass production of Spirulina platensis were related to natural water (the city of birjand) under 10% CO2 concentration( 0.49 and 0.98 gL-1 d-1) that is followd by pure water of 0.45, 0.09 gL-1 d-1 and artificial sea water of 0.42 and 0.84 gL-1 d-1 respectively.the growth rate was lower in artificial sea water because of high salinity.

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This experiment evaluated the effect of soluble polysaccharides in Spirulina platensis microalgae on growth performance, body composition and immune response of rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). In this regard, 180 rainbow trout (17.22 ± 0.5g) were selected and distributed in five experimental treatments (with three replications). Treatments included different levels of polysaccharide in dosage of 0 (control), 500, 1000, 2000 and 3000 mg / kg of feed. According to the results, in growth factors (final weight, body weight gain, specific growth factor, protein efficiency, feed conversion ratio and condition factor), no significant difference was observed. The highest and the lowest amount of carcass proteins were observed in the diet containing 500 mg polysaccharide and control, which showed a significant difference. The amount of fatty acids of the muscle of the fish body did not show any significant difference among the treatments. The highest and lowest levels of lysozyme activity were observed in treatments of 2,000 mg polysaccharide and control and the highest and lowest levels of complement activity were observed in treatments containing 3000 mg polysaccharide and control respectively (P <0.05). In general, the use of polysaccharide extracted from micro-algae did not significantly improve rainbow trout growth, but a slight improvement in growth and body composition (protein) in 500 mg polysaccharide per kg of diet was observed. In terms of safety indicators, treatments of 2,000 and 3,000 mg of polysaccharides per kg of diet had a good performance and could be used whenever needed.
 

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Iran is the fourth main producer of kiwi fruit in the world but the post-harvest wastage of this valuable fruit is considerable. On the other hand, the microalgae are natural and extraordinary nutritional sources that can be used in the production of functional food. The purpose of this study was the formulation of an innovative product of kiwifruit with high durability and its enrichment with Spirulina platensis algae and investigation of some of physicochemical and sensory properties of this product. In this study, the effects of different levels of Spirulina Platensis micro-algae in four levels (0%, 0.25%, 0.5% and 1%), agar hydrocolloids in three levels (0.25%, 0.5% and 1%) and guar in three levels (0.25%, 0.5% and 1%) on water activity, textural feature and color parameters of kiwi puree- based fruit pastille were studied and the best formulation been selected considering total acceptance and nutritional characteristics including vitamin C, total ash, protein, fat, fiber and iron and calcium content. The results showed that three variable (Spirulina Platensis, agar and guar) significant  effect on water activity. Additionaly, the results of coliremetre using Image processing techniques showed that the effects of agar and guar on "a*", "l*" and "b*" were not significant but Spirulina has a significant effect on color parameters on fruit pastilles. Texture analysis showed that agar and spirulina changed gumminess of the samples significantly. According to the sensory analysis, the 0.25% Spirulina, 0.25% agar and 1% guar obtained the highest score of total acceptance.  

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 In this experiment, a total of 128 Hy-line W₃₆ hens at 63 weeks of age were used. The hens were put at random into 4 treatment groups (4 replicates and 32 hens per treatment) and were fed four different diets: three diets with different levels of Spirulina (1.5, 2.0 and 2.5%) and one control group based on wheat and soybean meal. All birds were housed in commercial cages, had ad libitum access to water, and were fed 100 g bird^-1 per day. Egg production, feed intake, feed conversion ratio, egg weight, yolk index, Haugh unit, shell thickness, shell weight, specific gravity, egg yolk cholesterol, and yolk color were compared with the control group. Egg yolk color was measured by the BASF Ovo-color fan. Our results indicated that these traits did not show any significant changes with the Spirulina addition (P> 0.05), while a significant increase in egg yolk color was observed in the treatments that received the Spirulina (P< 0.0001). Yolk color scores of the control group and different levels of Spirulina (1.5, 2.0 and 2.5%) were 1.5, 10.5, 11.4 and 11.6 in BASF color fan, respectively. There were not significant differences between the treatments with 2.0 and 2.5% of Spirulina. In conclusion, this study can suggest use of 2.0~2.5% of Spirulina in diet to produce an aesthetically pleasing yolk color.

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Microalgae are a potentially great source of natural compounds, which could be used as functional ingredients. The addition of microalgal biomass to foods is an interesting tool for production of nutritionally supplemented food materials with biologically active compounds, besides coloring purposes. Due to the growing consumption of sauces in human life and the necessity of food enrichment as an effective long-term strategy for dealing with nutritional deficiencies, a fortified functional sauce was prepared. In this study, Spirulina alga sauce was prepared with three levels of algae powder (0.3, 0.5 and 0.7%), and fortified with iron and zinc in three replicates and at analyzed during three time intervals. During the given periods (The 1st, 30th and 60th days of production), chemical, rheological and microbial analysis and sensory evaluation were carried out. The results showed a significant difference in pH (p<0.05). The acidity and static viscosity of some samples containing iron and zinc had a significant difference. Viscosity decreased during the time in each treatment, the dynamic viscosity was the lowest for the control sample and the highest for the samples of the three algae levels. Microbial contamination of samples was very low and was within the standards range. Sensory evaluation of the colors of the samples containing 0.5% algae level were preferable and did not significantly differ. Practically, in terms of odor, taste, texture and overall acceptability, there were not any significant differences. Consequently, this study showed that functional low-calorie fortified sauce can be produced with iron and zinc, using microalgae.

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In recent years there has been extensive research into the use of edible coatings in food packaging. Today, the use of edible coatings has increased due to consumers' desire to purchase products that maintain their freshness. In this research, edible coating based on different percentages of Spirulina platensis (0.5-1.5%) with constant percentages of gelatin powder (2%), chitosan powder (1%), and glycerol as lubricants was used. Physicochemical properties such as moisture content, pH, Acidity, color, total phenol, nutritional properties such as protein content, iron content and ascorbic acid content, sensory evaluation and microbial characteristics of control and other treatments were evaluated at days 0, 7 and 14 after production. The results of chemical tests showed the moisture content, acidity, phenol level were increased with increasing of Spriulina platencis in different treatments. The results of colorimetric analysis also showed that by increasing the percentage of spirulina the transparency of treatments decreased. The results of nutritional evaluation showed that there was a significant difference in protein, iron and ascorbic acid levels with increasing of Spirulina platensis (p <0.05). Increasing the amount of spirulina platensis was effective on the microbial growth as well as the taste and color of the treatments, which was diagnosed by sensory evaluation.

 

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Algae and microalgae are great potential sources of natural compounds that can be used to produce functional foods. Spirulina platensis is one of the edible microalgae with no side effects. Lack of cellulose in the cell wall of Spirulina platensis makes it easy to digest. However, other microalgae do not have this advantage. This property has made Spirulina platensis more valuable. The purpose of this study was to use Spirulina platensis as egg white replacer and investigate its effect on physicochemical and sensory properties of sponge cake during storage time. For this purpose, different egg white ratios (0, 25, 50, 75 and 100% w/w) were substituted in sponge cake formulation with Spirulina platensis powder. The results showed that the addition of Spirulina platensis powder reduced the moisture content, specific volume, porosity and cohesiveness of the samples. Protein, fat, ash, pH and firmness of sponge cake samples increased with increasing amounts of microalgae powder. As the amount of Spirulina platensis microalgae powder increased, overall acceptance of the samples decreased, but this decrease was not significant (p˂0.05). In general, the use of Spirulina platensis powder in small quantities as an egg white replacer, improved the properties of sponge cake.

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The basis for modeling the shelf life of snacks enriched with Spirulina platensis is the storage temperature. After production, the snacks were packed in polypropylene bags and stored at 25°C (room temperature) and 5°C (refrigerator) for a specified period of 180 days. Shelf life studies were performed by semi-educated and consumer panelists. During this period, microbial tests (total count of bacteria, mold, yeast and coliform), moisture content and hardness were examined. Weibull hazard analysis was used to estimate the shelf life of snacks enriched with Spirulina platensis powder based on sensory properties assessment. Considering the 25% and 50% probability of rejection, the shelf life at 5 ° C for enriched and control samples was 98, 67 and 184, 158 days and at 25 ° C for 189, 125,217 and 321 respectively Were estimated. Also, the equation of shelf life with the probability of rejection by consumers was presented. Finally, enriched and control snacks were microbiologically evaluated. The results showed that the enriched and control snack samples were completely microbiologically safe for consumption over a 360-day period.

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In order to reduce the sugar consumption in the pastille formulation and improve its nutritional value using Spirulina platensis microalgae, the effect of sugar replacement with stevioside-isomalt, gelatin replacement with Persian gum and effect of using spirulina as a bioactive compound on the physicochemical and textural properties of pastilles were investigated. In order to optimization the production conditions of enriched diet pastille, the response surface method (RSM) in the form of a central composite design were used in 5 levels of sugar replacement with stevia-isomalt (0, 25, 50, 75, 100%), gelatin replacement with persian gum (0, 25, 50, 75,100%) and Spirulina (0, 0.25, 0.50, 0.75, 1%). The results of physicochemical, textural and sensory properties of the selected product were evaluated during 0, 15, 30, 45 and 60 days and compared with the control sample. The results showed that an increase in the percentage of sucrose replacement with stevioside-isomalt and gelatin replacement with persian gum, resulted in an increase and decrease the hardness, respectively. Density and adhesiveness decreased and increased significantly with increasing percentage of sucrose replacement with stevioside-isomalt, respectively. Among the investigated formuls, samples containing 13% sucrose replacement with stevioside-isomalt, 100% gelatin replacement with persian gum and 0.28% Spirulina; and 60% sucrose replacement with stevioside-isomalt, 100% gelatin replacement with persian gum and 0.02% Spirulina were determined as the best formulation. Comparison between treatments revealed a moisture reduction and density increment of the optimal samples (p<0.05), while the hardness of the optimal samples did not significantly change during storage time (p>0.05). Results of sensory analysis indicate that control sample had better sensory characteristics (taste, after taste, texture and overall acceptability) than the other samples. The addition of Spirulina platensis microalgae as a functional supplement can improve nutritional properties, especially protein and minerals such as iron in the product.

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Spirulina platensis is biomass rich in protein, iron and amino acids, vitamins, unsaturated fatty acids, antioxidants, and minerals. The aim of producing dairy desserts with Spirulina platensis is to create varieties in consumer food products, develop dairy products, and create enjoyable foods with nutritional characteristics appropriate for various age groups, especially children. The effect of multiple levels of spirulina (1-3% by weight), stevioside sweetener (0.5-1.5% by weight), and corn starch (1-3% by weight) on the characteristics of a dairy dessert were examined. Moreover, formulation optimization with variables at different levels was determined by applying the response surface method (RSM). The results indicated that the most influential parameter in the color, protein, and iron of dessert samples was the amount of spirulina. The amount of corn starch significantly affected the dessert tissuechr('39')s springiness, gumminess, chewing ability, stiffness, and viscosity in all samples (p<0.05). According to the results, the optimal sample formulation was selected with stevia composition at 0.05%, Spirulina platensis at 3%, and corn starch at 1% with a utility coefficient of 0.96. The optimal sample in the production laboratory and chemical, rheological, and color parameters were also evaluated. The results showed that the difference between the samples produced based on the optimal formulation and the values predicted by the software was not significant, indicating the modelchr('39')s high efficiency in predicting the quality properties of the produced dessert.

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Spirulina platensis has attracted special attention in various industries due to its natural pigments with specific performance characteristics. In this study, the effects of vitamin B₁₂ (0.5 to 1.5 µg/l), date waste extract as a carbon source (1 to 1.5 g/l of glucose), and urea as a source of nitrogen (50 to 150 mg / l) parameters by fed-batch feeding under submerged culture was optimized and the production of Spirulina platensis and natural pigments were examined. The results showed that the addition of urea and date waste extract increased the production of biomass and phycocyanin, allophycocyanin, carotenoids, and chlorophyll. The results of the effect of vitamin B₁₂ showed that this vitamin in low concentration has a positive effect on the production of spirulina and the pigments phycocyanin, allophycocyanin, carotenoids, and chlorophyll. Also, the use of date waste extract with vitamin B12 should be used optimally in combination with each other to achieve the highest production efficiency of biomass and pigments phycocyanin, allophycocyanin, carotenoids, and chlorophyll. At low concentrations of vitamin B₁₂, increasing changes in date waste increase carotenoid production. Also, in low concentrations of date waste, with increasing changes in vitamin B₁₂, carotenoid production increases, but in the highest concentration of these two variables, carotenoid production decreases due to the opposite effect. In high concentrations of vitamin B₁₂, increasing changes in urea increase chlorophyll production. At the optimized condition, (vitamin B₁₂ 0.5 µg.l^-1, date waste extract 1.5 g.l^-1 of glucose, urea 150 mg.l^-1) the biomass, phycocyanin, allophycocyanin, carotenoids and chlorophyll contents were 203 (g/100g) 128, 8.42,  4.09 and 7.2  (mg.l^-1). It can be concluded that vitamin B₁₂ along with the use of date waste creates mixotrophic conditions in the growth of Spirulina platensis, which leads to increased production of biomass and natural pigments.
 

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Spirulina platensis is an edible microalga with high protein content (60-70%). Presently, there is a rising interest to evaluate in vitro cytotoxic effect of edible protein after hydrolysis by the gastric protease. Unfortunately, despite widespread researches about the health effect of hydrolyzed proteins in dairy products, very few studies are available in the field of marine microalgae protein. Therefore, this research was aimed to investigate anticancer and antibacterial effects of the dominant protein of S. platensis after hydrolyzed by Trypsin and Chymotrypsin enzymes on Human colon adenocarcinoma cell and Escherichia coli, and Staphylococcus aureus, respectively. The results revealed that ̴ 20-22 kDa protein and its derived peptides decrease bacterial growth and <3kDa peptide fraction was able to significantly reduced SW480 cell viability.  Based on this study, we can conclude that Spirulina plantesis is a potential protein source in the future industrial production of functional peptides.
 

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Spirulina platensis found enormous applications in agriculture, food industry, pharmacy, cosmetics, medicine, mainly because of its high nutritional content and health-promoting properties. Therefore, the extraction of bioactive compounds from it remains a challenge. The objective of this work was to investigate comparison ultrasound and maceration techniques for the extraction of phenolic compounds from microalgae Spirulina platensis. Individual food-grade solvents (water (0% ethanol), ethanol (96% ethanol)) and their mixture (50% water +50% ethanol), were used for the extraction procedures. The optimal extraction condition for phenolic compounds was found at maceration when 96% ethanol was used as the solvent. Moreover, the highest yield of carotenoids and flavonoid extraction was found by sonication when 96% ethanol was used as the solvent. The use of ultrasound-assisted food-grade solvent extraction increased the extraction of the high-value added compounds and therefore resulted in higher antioxidant activities.
 

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