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A simple method for extracting phycocyanin from Arthrospira (Spirulina) platensis by autolysis

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Abstract

Phycocyanin (PC) is a natural blue pigment that has great commercial value in food and pharmaceutical industry. Arthrospira (Spirulina) platensis is a photosynthetic spiral-shaped cyanobacterium containing a rich PC pigment. Autolysis is the enzymatic digestion of cells by the action of its own enzymes. To develop an effective and economical extraction process, an autolysis process was incorporated into the conventional freezing–thawing method. In the present study, 91% of maximal extraction yield of PC with 1.194 purity (A620/A280) was obtained via autolysis after 3 h of incubation at 37 °C without using an extraction salt solution or a successive freezing–thawing process. In addition to temperature, the initial concentration of bicarbonate in growth medium and the concentration of wet biomass are important parameters that influence the extraction yield of PC by autolysis.

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Acknowledgements

This research was supported by the Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education (2021R1I1A3055799) and by the Korea Evaluation Institute of Industrial Technology (KEIT) Grant funded by the Korea Government (MOTIE) (No. RS-2022-00155902).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Food Science and Technology, Institute of Agriculture and Life Science, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, 52828, Republic of Korea

    Soo-Bin Jung, Min-Soo Kang & Jong-Hee Kwon

  2. Division of Applied Life Sciences (BK21), Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, 52828, Republic of Korea

    Soo-Bin Jung, Joo-Young Jung & Jong-Hee Kwon

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  1. Soo-Bin Jung
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Jung, SB., Kang, MS., Jung, JY. et al. A simple method for extracting phycocyanin from Arthrospira (Spirulina) platensis by autolysis. Bioprocess Biosyst Eng 45, 1731–1738 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00449-022-02781-1

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