title: Building a better mousetrap II: using Design of Experiments with unconfounded ions to compare the growth of different microalgae.
abstract: A large number of unconfounded media variations were used with a Scheffe Mix Model to examine in an unambiguous fashion the effects of variations in six important ions; NH4(+), NO3(-), Na(+), K(+), PO4(-), and Cl(-), on the growth of Chlorella vulgaris. This allows several novel observations on media components, for example, the inhibitory effects of chloride, to be made. Using a side by side comparison, it is shown that two strains of Chlorella show significant physiological and functional differences brought out by this approach. Testing selected formulations with a diverse set of algae demonstrated different effects on both growth and cellular lipid content, in some cases driving significant lipid production. This suggests that future work using a larger portion of media composition space could lead to the development of novel media supporting maximal biomass production and lipid production.
authors.affiliation: Life Sciences Research Center, Department of Biology, United States Air Force Academy, 2355 Faculty Drive, USAF Academy, CO 80840, United States. Electronic address: Patrick.hallenbeck@umontreal.ca.
authors.forename: Patrick C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Hallenbeck
authors.affiliation: Life Sciences Research Center, Department of Biology, United States Air Force Academy, 2355 Faculty Drive, USAF Academy, CO 80840, United States.
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Grogger
authors.affiliation: Life Sciences Research Center, Department of Biology, United States Air Force Academy, 2355 Faculty Drive, USAF Academy, CO 80840, United States.
authors.forename: Megan
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mraz
authors.affiliation: Life Sciences Research Center, Department of Biology, United States Air Force Academy, 2355 Faculty Drive, USAF Academy, CO 80840, United States.
authors.forename: Donald
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Veverka
mesh_terms: D064751:Ammonium Compounds / Q000494:pharmacology; D048408:Chlorella vulgaris / Q000254:growth & development; D007477:Ions; D008055:Lipids / Q000096:biosynthesis; D058086:Microalgae / Q000187:drug effects / Q000254:growth & development*; D009566:Nitrates / Q000494:pharmacology; D011188:Potassium / Q000494:pharmacology; D012107:Research Design; D012996:Solutions
chemical_list: D064751:Ammonium Compounds; D007477:Ions; D008055:Lipids; D009566:Nitrates; D012996:Solutions; D011188:Potassium
keywords: Algae; Biofuels; Medium optimization unconfounded ions; Response surface methodology; Scheffe Mix Model