Abstract

Genetic Characterization and Engineering of Algae for Biofuel

Shashi Kumar, Group Leader, ICGEB

Microalgae are the clean renewable source of future energy due to their fast growth rates and non-interference with food security. Alternative sources of energy are explored mainly with the focus on economic feasibility and environmental safety considering the climate change challenges associated with the use of coal and petroleum-based fuels. Biofuels from algae to reduce the CO₂ emission up to 70 percent compared to fossil fuels. Therefore, we aimed to characterise the photosynthetic marine algae that are vigorous in lipid production and improve the algal strains using genetic engineering tools for developing sustainable energy source. DNA barcode technology was developed for genetic identification of algal species related to biofuel application using 16S rRNA and 23S rRNA markers. Higher lipid accumulation, which is imperative to achieve economic viability of biofuel production, was achieved by genetic engineering of an algal strain with the heterogeneous diacylglycerol acyltransferase of rapeseed (BnDGAT2). Overexpression of BnDGAT2 altered the fatty acids profile in the transformed cells and significantly improves the neutral lipids p