Russian and Vietnamese biologists have discovered three new species of green algae in the tropical forests of Vietnam, which accumulate valuable fatty acids-omega-3 and omega-6. These substances are necessary for human health, especially for the heart, brain and immunity.
Typically, Omega-3 and Omega-6 come to us with fish or vegetable oils, but initially they accumulate in microal-seeds that eat sea animals. Therefore, scientists are looking for new types of algae that can be used as a source of beneficial fats.
Experts have allocated five strains of unicellular algae of the genus Coccomyxa from the soil of the National Park Cát Tiên. One of them was already known to science, and three turned out to be new. The richest on fatty acids has become Coccomyxa Fusiformis-it contains up to 75% polyunsaturated fats, especially a lot of alpha-linolenic acid. And Coccomyxa Subellipsoidea strain was a record holder for omega-3-62.6% of all fatty acids.
Researchers plan to continue experiments to understand how to grow these algae for industrial use.
