Towards the commercialization of Botryococcus braunii for triterpenoid production

Botryococcus braunii can accumulate unusually high levels of triterpenoid hydrocarbons making it a potential source of high value chemicals. However, its commercial application is hampered by its slow growth and lack of large-scale studies of triterpenoid hydrocarbon production. This study investigated hydrocarbon production in two race B of B. braunii strains, Overjuyo-3 and Kossou-4, at 25 °C in 500 L open tanks under artificial lighting in modified BG11 medium over 60 days. Maximum growth was reached by 40 days with Overjuyo-3 producing more biomass (3.05 g L⁻¹) than Kossou-4 (2.55 g L⁻¹). However, Kossou-4 produced more oil (0.75 g L⁻¹) and triterpenoid hydrocarbons (C30–C34; 50 % of oil weight) compared to 0.63 g L⁻¹ of oil in Overjuyo-3 with triterpenoid hydrocarbons making up 29 % of oil weight. This research demonstrates for the first time that large-scale production of high value triterpenoid hydrocarbon for commercial application is feasible with Kossou-4 strain.