Entrapped cyanobacteria: Implications for biotechnology

Abstract

Immobilized cyanobacteria behaved like spores under adverse conditions. Air dried immobilized cyanobacteria stored under open conditions of light, temperature, air and dust of all seasons retained the ability to regenerate active colonies at least for three years. Upon restoration to liquid media, these regenerated cyanobacterial colonies showed growth and nitrogen fixation comparable to their free-living counterparts by second generation. Air-drying shrinked the gel beads to the size of the mustard seeds and hence, a large amount of such beads could be stored in a small space. This opens up the possibility of convenient storage and transportation of desirable cyanobacterial strains for various purposes including using them as inoculum in crop fields and in poor quality soil to increase the fixed nitrogen content.