Extraction and partial characterization of exopolysaccharides and pigments from cyanobacterium Oscillatoria pseudogeminata G.Schmid

Cyanobacterial pigments such as chlorophyll, carotenoids and phycobiliproteins are considered as ecofriendly natural colourants used in food and food additives as they have nutraceutical value, non-toxic and non-carcinogenic. The present study focused on extraction, partial characterization of extracellular polysaccharides (EPS), phycocyanin and mycosporin like amino acid (MAA) from a freshwater cyanobacterium Oscillatoria pseudogeminata G.Schmid.The purified isolate of O. pseudogeminata was deposited and maintained in the NRMC-F, Bharathidasan University. The EPS was extracted with the help of double volume of ice-cold acetone and confirmed by UV (260 and 280 nm), FTIR and XRD analyses. Phycocyanin and MAA were also extracted from O. pseudogeminata biomass using double distilled water. The UV-Vis Spectrophotometric results revealed that 520 and 230 nm peaks represent phycocyanin and MAA, respectively. Further, the process of scaling-up the biomass and increase the productivity of EPS, Phycocyanin and MAA from Oscillatoria pseudogeminata is under raceway pond system, already initialed in our laboratory.