ABSTRACT
The marine environment constitutes two-thirds of our planet and holds the major part of biodiversity. The extensive resources provided thereby constitute the basis of many economic activities, and the marine environment offers a wide array of applications for biotechnology in the coming future (Guedes et al., 2011b). One nuclear element of marine ecosystems is microalgae. They constitute a diverse group of microscopic prokaryotic and eukaryotic photosynthetic organisms with vital ecological importance; some of the most efcient converters of solar energy to valuable products, at the expense of (theoretically) inexpensive natural resources, are indeed microalgae. Microalgae (especially those
6.1 Introduction 99 6.2 Microalgal Pigments 100
6.2.1 Chlorophylls 101 6.2.2 Carotenoids 101 6.2.3 Phycobiliproteins 102
6.3 New Cell Disruption Methods 103 6.3.1 Pulsed Electric Field for Pigment Extraction 103 6.3.2 Microwave-Assisted Pigment Extraction 104
6.4 Microalgal Pigment Extraction and Purication Methods 104 6.4.1 Chlorophyll Extraction 104
6.4.1.1 Classical Solvent Extraction of Chlorophylls 105 6.4.1.2 Supercritical Fluid Extraction of Chlorophylls 107 6.4.1.3 Purication and Chlorophyll Quantication Methods 108
6.4.2 Carotenoid Extraction 108 6.4.2.1 Classical Solvent Extraction of Carotenoids 108 6.4.2.2 Pressurized Fluid Extraction of Carotenoids 113 6.4.2.3 Supercritical Fluid Extraction of Carotenoids 115
6.4.3 Classical Solvent Extraction and Purication of Phycobiliproteins 118 Acknowledgments 122 References 122
from marine origin) remain to date largely unexplored. They can be classied according to their colors due to the prevalence of certain pigments-Chlorophyceae (green color), Rhodophyceae (red color), Cyanophyceae (blue green), and Pheophyceae (brown). The major microalgal pigments include chlorophyll a, b, and c, β-carotene, phycocyanin (PC), xanthophylls, and phycoerythrin (PE) (Dufossé et al., 2005). Microalgae have thus attracted commercial interest due to their potential to generate valuable products, namely, pigments; some of them have met wide success, for example, lutein, astaxanthin, β-carotene, phycobiliproteins, and PCs (Porra, 1991; Guedes et al., 2011a,b; Amaro et al., 2013; Cuellar-Bermudez et al., 2015).
