Aquaculture International 7: 261275, 1999.

1999 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands.

Growth and chemical composition of Spirulina maxima

and Spirulina platensis biomass at different
temperatures
OLIVEIRA, M.A.C.L. DE*, MONTEIRO, M.P.C., ROBBS, P.G. and
LEITE, S.G.F.
Departamento de Engenharia Bioqumica, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro,
RJ 21945-970, Brazil; and Departamento de Tecnologia Qumica e Departamento de Tecnologia de
Alimentos, Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, RJ 21949-970, Brazil
(Received 14 December 1998; accepted 2 August 1999)

Abstract. The influence of temperature on growth and biomass composition of two species of
Spirulina, S. maxima and S. platensis used for food was studied. A 4L fermenter with temperature and
agitation control was used to cultivate both species. Under continuous light, maximum cell production of
2.4 g l1 was verified for both cultures studied at temperatures above 25 C: S. maxima (30 C and 35 C)
and S. platensis (25 C and 30 C). An accentuated lag phase was observed for all cultures
at lower temperatures (1520 C), and a maximum biomass production of 1.5 g l1 was achieved. It
was also observed that an increase of temperature caused a marked decrease in protein content, while
carbohydrate synthesis was stimulated. The concentration of g-linolenic acid varied from 1116% for
S. maxima and from 1214% for S. platensis, at the optimum growth temperatures. Greater culture
volumes were also studied in order to compare the performance of glass and plastic containers. At
optimum growth temperature, S. maxima produced the same cell growth and similar final biomass composition.
Key words: cyanobacteria, microalgae, Spirulina, Spirulina composition, temperature

Introduction
Interest in the production of algal biomass has become intense during the last
50 y due to worldwide food scarcity. The cyanobacteria and microalgae such as
Chlorella, Spirulina and Dunaliella possess a great potential not only for the
production of traditional food algae, but also for the extraction of valuable chemicals
such as b-carotene and phycocyanin. Cyanobacteria, especially Spirulina, have
been used for human feed in countries of Asia and Africa, due to their high
protein content. Spirulina cultivation is widespread in aquaculture applications due

* To whom all correspondence should be addressed at: Fax: (5221) 590-4991; e-mail:
maoliveira@ufrj.br

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particularly to the use of their pigments as feed for tropical fish (Vonshak and
Richmond, 1988). Microalgae are used in aquaculture as a liquid to feed young fishes
and in dehydrated form to enrich foods of ornamental fish, crustaceans, shell fish and
bivalves. A significant number of other algal species are used in wastewater
treatment and agriculture (Borowitzka and Borowitzka, 1988).
In their natural habitat, cyanobacteria are susceptible to sudden physical and
chemical fluctuations of environmental conditions such as light, salinity, temperature
and nutrient limitation (Tomaselli et al., 1993). Temperature is one of
the major factors controlling the multiplication of Spirulina species. The
optimum temperature for Spirulina growth lies in the range of 30 to 35 C,
temperatures frequently encountered in North and Northeast regions of Brazil.
These tropical lands are affected by the Atlantic coast and the Equator region,
resulting in a humid climate with favourable conditions of temperature and
light exposure time, for algal cultivation throughout the year. These climatic
conditions particularly favour the commonly practised outdoor industrial algal
production. In many non-tropical production sites, diurnal fluctuations in
pond temperatures, may be as much as 20 C. Supplementary heating is required in
winter in temperate climates to maintain temperatures above 30 C, thus greatly
increasing operational costs (Bombart et al., 1993). In winter, Spirulina does not
grow significantly in open tanks (except in the tropics), resulting in lower yields
(Richmond, 1992). In order to enhance culture conditions and lower those costs,
algae manufacturers frequently cover the ponds with transparent polyethylene to
keep the medium warmer and free from contamination (Vonshak et al., 1992).
However, despite all these precautions, cultivation of algal monoculture outdoors is
hampered by contamination with other algae and with zooplankton at low temperatures (Vonshak et al., 1983). Low temperatures favour Chlorella cultures, which
become the dominant species in the culture, causing a decrease in Spirulina growth.
Therefore, regions where winter temperatures will be below 15 C are not suitable to
grow Spirulina (Richmond et al., 1990).
Tomaselli et al. (1988) studied the influence of temperature on Spirulina platensis
M2 cultivated continuously and observed a significant decrease in protein content
(22%) associated with a remarkable increase in lipids (43%) and carbohydrate
contents (30%) at 40 C. It was also noticed at this temperature that the fatty acid
composition changed towards a higher degree of saturation. In the same way the
effect of fermentation temperature (24, 30 and 35 C) on the total lipid and fatty acid
composition in supplemented cultures with linoleic acid, was studied by Quoc and
Dubacq (1997) who also verified that the lipid composition was highly affected by
temperature.
The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of temperature on the
growth of two species of Spirulina, S. maxima and S. platensis, as well as to
establish its effect on the final biomass chemical composition obtained.

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Materials and methods
Microorganisms and culture conditions. Two species of Spirulina designated Spirulina maxima and Spirulina platensis strains were used in this study. The cultures
were obtained from the Culture Collection of the Centro di Studio dei Microrganismi
Autotrofi of the National Research Council of Italy. Both S. maxima and S. platensis
were grown in batch culture of mineral medium, described by Paoletti (1985) (cited
in Ferraz and Aquarone, 1985) with the following composition (g l1): 2.5 KNO3,
1.9 K2SO4, 0.25 MgSO4.7H2O, 0.05 CaCl2.2H2O, 0.5 K2HPO4, 15.15 NaHCO3,
8.9 Na2CO3, 0.92 NaCl and micronutrient elements (to l l of nutrient solution
were added 1 ml of: 2.86 H3BO3, 1.81 MnCl4.H2O, 0.22 ZnSO4.7H2O, 0.39
Na2MoO4.2H2O, 0.079 CuSO4.5H2O, 0.049 Co(NO3).6H2O and 1 ml of Fe-EDTA
solution: 29.8 EDTA, 24.9 FeSO4.7H2O). The cultures were kept under continuous
light of 15 mmol m2 s1 and were transferred every month to a new medium.
Inoculum preparation. Inoculum was prepared in Erlenmeyer flasks containing
100 ml of the mineral medium agitated at 200 rpm in an incubator shaker (New
Brunswick scientific, series 25D). The temperature was kept constant 35 (l) C and
illumination was provided by fluorescent lamps at an intensity of 15 mmol m2 s1,
for 4 days.
Experiments. The experiments were carried out in a 4 l Virtis fermenter and also
in 20 l containers made of glass and plastic with temperature control and agitation.
Illumination was provided by fluorescent lamps at intensity of 180 mmol m2 s1. All
experiments were initiated with 0.05 g l1 of inoculum. Triplicate cultures were
harvested after 15 days incubation, by filtration on a 325 m mesh sieve and washed
with distilled water to remove carbonates. The water excess was eliminated using a
vacuum system. The biomass was transferred to a closed container, identified, frozen
(225 C) and lyophylized (LaBconco freeze dryer 18) for chemical analysis.
Experiment 1. Initially the experiments were carried out with two species of
Spirulina (Spirulina maxima and Spirulina platensis), using temperatures in the
range of 15 to 45 C, at 5 C intervals in a 4 l fermenter.
Experiment 2. The process was carried out with S. platensis at l C intervals,
ranging from 15 to 20 C in a 4 l fermenter.
Experiment 3. The experiment was carried out with S. maxima at a temperature of
30 C in glass and plastic containers, of approximately 20 l.
Quantitative determinations
Cellular quantification. The cell growth was measured daily by following the
absorbance variation at 600 nm with a spectrophotometer (model 20 Spetronic
Bausch and Lomb). The dry weight (DW) was evaluated using the relation between
dry weight and absorbance.

264
pH determination. pH of the growth medium was measured daily using a
potentiometer (Analion mark, model PM 600).
Total carbohydrate quantification. Total carbohydrate was quantified by the
method of Dubois et al. (1956), using glucose as standard.
Biological contaminants detection. Microscopic (Wild-M11-59128) observations
were performed in order to detect contamination with other microalgae.
Protein determination. Protein content was determined by the method of Kjeldhal
according to Hungria and Araujo (1994).
Fatty acid profile and total lipid determination. The final biomass lipids were
continuously extracted with petroleum ether in a Soxhlet extractor, according to the
technique adapted by Institute Adolph Lutz (1985). After extraction, the lipids were
submitted to saponification and methylated following the technique developed by
Hartman and Lago (1983). The methylated fatty acid esters were analysed in a gas
chromatograph, equipped with a flame ionization detector (FID) using CP Sil 88
capillary column. The operating conditions were: purge, 2 ml min1; H2, 30 ml min1
and synthetic air, 300 ml min1; column temperature, 210 C.
The results of the physico-chemical analysis were calculated as mean and standard
deviations and submitted to a statistical treatment by ORIGIN SOFTWARE.

Results and discussion

Effect of temperature in the growth of S. maxima and S. platensis
Maximum cell productions 2.4 g l1, were observed at temperatures of 30 and 35 C
for S. maxima and 25 and 30 C for S. platensis (Figures l and 2). Comparing both
species, a wide range of temperature tolerance from 20 to 40 C was observed. The
preference for high temperature was evident in both species since growth was not
inhibited at 40 C and remarkably low at 20 C. Moreover, it was observed that at
20 C, the specific growth rate of S. platensis was greater than that obtained for S.
maxima. Therefore we decided to verify the growth of S. platensis in a low
temperature range, varying from 15 to 20 C. It was observed that microalgae growth
increased with temperature and a great reduction of metabolic activity occurred for
temperatures below 17 C (Figure 3). Also, at temperatures of 15 and 45 C, the
absence of growth was associated with the disappearance of green pigmentation.
According to Richmond (1988) from observations of different strains of Spirulina the
optimal growth temperature was between 35 and 37 C with 40 C being definitely
injurious. However, it was reported in the work of Tomaselli et al. (1988) that a
strain of S. platensis could grow at temperatures above 40 C. In a previous work,
Goldman (1979) also verified that high temperature in large-scale mass cultures
could lead to high yields of algae. In addition, Ogawa et al. (1971) reported that for
S. platensis the optimum temperature for growth was between 35 and 37 C.

265

Figure 1. Effect of temperature on growth of Spirulina maxima in 4L glass fermenter.

Figure 2. Effect of temperature on growth of Spirulina platensis in 4L glass fermenter.

266

Figure 3. Cell growth of Spirulina platensis at low temperature in 4L glass fermenter.

First, the experiments were performed in glass containers of approximately 20 l

using both S. maxima and S. platensis, which demonstrated the same cell growth. For
that reason, we decided to work only with S. maxima and have carried out
experiments in two different containers, of glass (borosilicate) and plastic (polycarbonate), at the optimum temperature (30 C). These tests showed the same
behaviour in terms of cell growth and final biomass composition in both containers.
In this work we used large containers made of plastic, a cheaper alternative that has
never been reported on previously. However, it proved to be an excellent alternative
as it is low cost, easy to handle and maintain, low weight and non-breakable, thus
decreasing overall operational costs (Figures 4 and 5). In microalgae cultivation for
aquaculture in hatcheries, where oysters and bivalve seeds are produced, 20 l glass
containers are most often utilized (Absher, 1998).
The existence of a great quantity of mineral salts, especially sodium bicarbonate,
in the culture medium and also to a certain increase in pH, during the process, both
favour the selective growth of Spirulina. In this work no contamination with another
microalgae at all range of temperatures tested was found (Figures 6 and 7). In
outdoor cultures, Richmond (1988) reported that a pH of 11.0 is limiting to growth
of Spirulina. It was further added that Spirulina can readily tolerate progressive
changes in pH; however, the culture may rapidly deteriorate when pH is changed

267

Figure 4. Cell growth of Spirulina maxima and Spirulina platensis at optimum temperature (30 C) in
glass containers.

Figure 5. Cell growth of Spirulina maxima at optimum temperature (30 C) in glass and plastic
containers.

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Figure 6. pH profile of Spirulina maxima at different temperatures in 4L glass fermenter.

Figure 7. pH profile of Spirulina platensis at different temperatures in 4L glass fermenter.

269

Figure 8. Specific growth rate of Spirulina maxima and Spirulina platensis at different temperatures in
4L glass fermenter.

abruptly, as may happen in a growth medium which is not well buffered. In the
review on Spirulina by Ciferri (1983), he mentioned that in laboratory cultures,
Spirulina showed a wide range of optimum pH (8 to 11), but growth was evident also
at pH values close to 7 and as high as 11.3.
In this work, at temperatures of 30 and 35 C, it was verified that specific growth
rate (m) values for both cultures were similar. However, S. platensis growth was less
influenced by temperature showing little variation on the specific growth rates
(0.460.58 day1) compared to S. maxima (0.260.45 day1) Yet, at 40 C, S.
platensis was able to maintain a high growth rate as also observed by Tomaselli et al.
(1988) (Figure 8).
Tomaselli et al. (1993), working with strains of S. platensis and S. maxima,
verified that the optimum growth temperature was 35 C. They also observed that
five strains of S. platensis (6Mx, Sosa4, K4, Kd and M2) were able to grow at
temperatures up to 42 C, but higher temperatures were lethal. Experiments carried
out with S. platensis M2, grown at turbidostatic conditions under light limitation,
showed that, following a temperature increase, the photosynthetic cell pigments
decreased to approximately 50% after a rise from 35 to 42 C.
In our work it was observed that productivity increased with temperature until the
optimum growth temperature for both species was reached, and that at 40 C, a 50%

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Figure 9. Influence of temperature in the productivity of S. maxima and S. platensis.

reduction of the value of the productivity of S. maxima occurred, and an even lower
percentage for S. platensis was recorded (Figure 9).
Effect of temperature at the final composition of biomass of S. maxima and S.
platensis
In the experiments carried out at different temperatures increasing from 20 to 40 C
a decrease in protein content and a concurrent accumulation of carbohydrates was
observed (Table 1). A good agreement between the final biomass composition
obtained both in glass or plastic containers was observed, as mentioned previously
(Table 2). Tomaselli et al. (1993) reported similar changes in the cell macromolecular composition as a function of temperature.
Tornabene et al. (1985), examining the lipidic and lipopolysaccharide constituents
of S. platensis, found a higher content of lipids, 16.6% in dry weight, when
compared to 11% of lipids determined by Hudson and Karis (1974) for Spirulina
maxima and 5% of lipids recorded by Switzer (1980 cited in Richmond, 1988).
Comparing the optimum growth temperature (30 C) of both species, we observed
that the protein content in S. maxima was somewhat greater than in S. platensis,

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Table 1. Effect of temperature on the mean (SD) composition of the final biomass of
S. maxima and S. platensis in 4L fermenter
Proteins (% DW)

Carbohydrates (% DW)

Lipids (% DW)

Temperature
(C)

Spirulina
maxima

Spirulina
platensis

Spirulina
maxima

Spirulina
platensis

Spirulina
maxima

Spirulina
platensis

20

70.24
(4.84)

71.56
(3.07)

9.88
(1.75)

10.58
(1.33)

6.22
(0.37)

7.24
(0.83)

25

68.01
(4.35)

68.04
(3.82)

11.68
(0.81)

12.65
(1.39)

5.97
(1.27)

6.32
(0.93)

30

68.67
(0.68)

64.35
(1.24)

12.72
(1.23)

14.35
(1.56)

6.20
(0.50)

6.96
(0.86)

35

64.58
(1.19)

61.63
(1.04)

15.57
(0.94)

16.24
(1.38)

6.79
(0.24)

7.18
(0.52)

40

62.81
(1.30)

59.41
(0.95)

19.63
(1.31)

19.93
(0.96)

7.30
(0.59)

7.24
(0.64)

The final cell concentration was 2.4 g l21.

68.67 and 64.35% respectively (Table 1). These high protein contents indicate that
the Spirulina species tested should be commercially available as food supplies in
aquaculture. According to Schubert (1988), values of 65 to 69% protein content have
already been reported for S. maxima and 40 to 60% for S. platensis.
Effect of temperature on the profile of fatty acids of S. maxima and S. platensis
Experiment 1 temperatures in which high production of the g-linolenic acid (C18:3)
was detected had been 35 and 40 C for S. maxima and 30 C for S. platensis (Table
3). A high content of g-linolenic acid at 20 C was also observed, probably because
at this temperature the culture growth is still in the exponential phase as verified by
Tanticharoen et al. (1994). The concentrations of g-linolenic acid varied from
1116% for S. maxima and from 1214% for S. platensis, at the optimum growth
temperatures. A high content of palmitic acid (C16:0) was found at all temperatures
for both strains studied.

Table 2.Composition of the final biomass of S. maxima in optimum

growth temperature in glass and plastic containers

Proteins (%DW)
Carbohydrates (%DW)
Lipids (%DW)

Glass containers

Plastic containers

74.36 (2.23)
14.45 (0.97)
6.91 (0.64)

71.22 (3.05)
15.17 (0.69)
8.98 (0.83)

The final cell concentration was 0.7 g l21.

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Table 3. Fatty acid profile of S. maxima and S. platensis at different temperatures

C 16:0 (%)

C 16:1 (%)

C 18:0 (%)

C 18:1 (%)

C 18:2 (%)

C 18:3 (%)

Temp.
(C)

Spirulina
maxima

Spirulina
platensis

Spirulina
maxima

Spirulina
platensis

Spirulina
maxima

Spirulina
platensis

Spirulina
maxima

Spirulina
platensis

Spirulina
maxima

Spirulina
platensis

Spirulina
maxima

Spirulina
platensis

20

48.03
(0.56)

39.73
(0.25)

6.41
(0.75)

9.11
(0.26)

1.62
(0.13)

1.29
(0.11)

9.00
(0.35)

6.63
(0.23)

13.12
(1.15)

14.77
(0.05)

12.87
(0.28)

17.61
(0.20)

25

45.45
(0.57)

44.92
(0.32)

6.74
(0.05)

6.78
(0.54)

1.61
(0.08)

1.56
(0.03)

11.37
(0.19)

11.51
(1.04)

1.91
(0.49)

12.26
(1.09)

13.17
(1.19)

14.02
(1.13)

30

50.42
(1.60)

36.38
(0.14)

4.46
(0.41)

3.39
(0.23)

1.79
(0.23)

2.76
(0.15)

11.17
(1.07)

20.92
(1.23)

11.65
(0.51)

8.69
(0.60)

10.96
(0.90)

13.65
(1.07)

35

47.06
(0.74)

46.50
(0.09)

3.64
(0.26)

2.73
(0.08)

1.75
(0.12)

2.28
(0.18)

8.56
(0.75)

14.69
(1.24)

13.30
(1.22)

11.41
(0.67)

15.53
(0.82)

12.50
(0.22)

40

48.66
(1.33)

48.77
(0.16)

2.06
(0.13)

2.11
(0.12)

3.03
(0.29)

2.19
(0.15)

6.75
(0.56)

14.48
(0.98)

15.53
(0.57)

11.36
(1.04)

15.09
(0.89)

11.22
(0.94)

The final cell concentration was 2.4 g l21.

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Data summarized in Table 3 shows that g-linolenic acid content does not
significantly vary over the temperature range 2040 C but was not verified. This
represents a great potential for industrial application of these strains because it could
maximize protein without adversely affecting g-linolenic acid content.
Tomaselli et al. (1993) observed that, as temperature increased, lipid cell content
also increased markedly and fatty acid composition changed towards a higher degree
of saturation; in addition, g-linolenic biosynthesis was progressively hampered and
linoleic acid was accumulated.
Several species of microalgae were selected by Franke et al. (1994) who observed
high lipid content and a well defined fatty acid composition. Among these, cyanophytes do not contain high fat (4.47.4%); fatty acid profile encountered in their
studies were in the following range: 3547% palmitic acid, 613% oleic acid, 027%
linoleic acid and 1623% linolenic acid.
The results of fatty acid in our cultures, presented in Table 3, show good
agreement with data reported in the literature, such as those obtained by Franke et al.
(1994).
Mahajan et al. (1995) cultivated S. platensis ARM-346, Spirulina L and Spirulina
X in SOT medium, described by Hirano (1990 cited in Mahajan et al., 1995) and S.
subsalsa M183 in BG-11 medium at 24 (l) C, 120 rpm for 7 days with illumination
and verified that S. platensis accumulated large amounts of g-linolenic acid (GLA).
Urea as a nitrogen source was most effective, giving a yield of 13.5 mg g-linolenic
g1 dry cell mass. Increases in temperature over the range 15 to 35 C led to increases
in g-linolenic acid content along with biomass. Optimum temperature for maximum
g-linolenic acid and biomass production was 35 C.

Conclusions
1. S. maxima showed better growth than S. platensis at temperatures ranging from 20
to 40 C.
2. The effect of temperature on the growth of Spirulina showed a significant
influence on protein and carbohydrate compositions, but it did not affect lipid and
g-linolenic acid compositions.
3. Final biomass composition presented high nutritional value for algae cultivation,
especially in sunny regions like the Northeast of Brazil, and has great potential in
food applications.

Acknowledgements
We are very grateful to Dr Elioni Maria. A. Nicolaiewcksky for correcting the
English manuscript and Dr Eliana Flavia C. Servulo for her important suggestions

274
and contributions. We also thank Dr Djalva Santana for her kindness in carrying out
the analyses of fatty acids.

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