Gewinnung und Anwendung von Phycoerythrin aus Porphyridium cruentum

Summary Both the degree of light conversion by algae and the content of phycoerythrin per algal cell of Porphyridium cruentum (up to 50%) were shown to be higher when the culture of the red algae was irradiated by light previously passing a culture of Chlorella vulgaris than in the case of white light. A simple laboratory equipment is described for this special mode of light utilization by microalgae. The optimum nitrate concentration of the medium for the synthesis of B-phycoerythrin was 1.2 g 1 −1 under the conditions applied here. Cell disintegration with sonification and purification by different chromatographic techniques were used to isolate a preparation of B-phycoerythrin. This product was shown to be suitable as a fluorescence marker for latex particles and bud scars of yeast cells using the biotin-streptavidin-system.