Microalgae cultivation and metabolites production: a comprehensive review

Microalgae have important potential in the bio-based industry. However, their light-utilization mechanisms are still not fully understood. Together with knowledge of their metabolic pathways and their responses in carbon partitioning to different primary metabolites (carbohydrates, lipids and proteins), this information is essential if their potential and profitability are to be better exploited. The first part of this review describes the techniques used for microalgae cultivation and the growth factors that determine their productivity, one of the most important factors in techno-economic assessment studies of microalgae production systems. In the second part, a closer look is taken at their chemical composition in relation to the biosynthesis of primary and secondary metabolites. (C) 2018 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd