Effects on culture conditions for β-carotene contents of Dunaliella sp.

The single factor and orthogonal experiments were performed to optimize the cultivating conditions of Dunaliella sp. which was collected from salt lake in Yuncheng, Shanxi, China. Temperature, Na Cl, N, P and Fe were studied for effects on β-carotene contents of Dunaliella sp. The results showed that there was a good linear relationship between β-carotene contents of Dunaliella sp. and OD453 nm. The β-carotene contents of Dunaliella sp. was measured by the method of optical density which was simple, accurate and efficient.Dunaliella sp. was cultured under 20~25℃ and 1.0~2.0mol/L (Na Cl) that were conducive to the β-carotene accumulation. When Dunaliella sp. cells grow to the logarithmic phase, high concentrations of N and P were not conducive to the accumulation of β-carotene, and the concentration of Fe had no effect on the accumulation ofβ-carotene. The optimum concentrations of Na NO3, KH2PO4 and Fe C6H5O7 for β-carotene accumulation were0.6200, 0.0256, 0.0010g/L. The medium for β-carotene accumulation of Dunaliella sp. was optimized for lay the theoretical foundation of future development and utilization of local high β-carotene production algae strains.