Lactic acid bacteria (LAB) have been documented as potential vitamin B12 producers and may constitute an exogenous source of cobalamin for the microalga Chlorella vulgaris, which has been described as being able to perform vitamin uptake. Hence, there is an interest in discovering novel B12-producing probiotic LAB. Therefore, the purpose of the current work was to perform a phenotype–genotype analysis of the vitamin B12 biosynthesis capacity of LAB isolated from C. vulgaris bioreactors, and investigate their probiotic potential. Among the selected strains, Lactococcus lactis E32, Levilactobacillus brevis G31, and Pediococcus pentosaceus L51 demonstrated vitamin B12 biosynthesis capacity, with the latter producing the highest (28.19 ± 2.27 pg mL⁻¹). The genomic analysis confirmed the presence of pivotal genes involved in different steps of the biosynthetic pathway (hemL, cbiT, cobC, and cobD). Notably, P. pentosaceus L51 was the only strain harboring cobA, pduU, and pduV genes, which may provide evidence for the presence of the cobalamin operon. All strains demonstrated the capability to withstand harsh gastrointestinal conditions, although P. pentosaceus L51 was more resilient. The potential for de novo cobalamin biosynthesis and remarkable probiotic features highlighted that P. pentosaceus L51 may be considered the most promising candidate strain for developing high-content vitamin B12 formulations.

Marine microalgae are a rich reservoir of natural compounds, including bioactives. Nonetheless, these organisms remain fairly unexplored despite their potential biotechnological applications. Culture collections with diverse taxonomic groups and lifestyles are a good source to unlock this potential and discover new molecules for multiple applications such as the treatment of human pathologies or the production of aquaculture species. In the present work extracts from thirty-three strains (including twenty dinoflagellates, four diatoms and nine strains from seven other algal classes), cultivated under identical conditions, were examined for their antiviral, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer activities. Among these, antiviral and anti-inflammatory activities were detected in a few strains while the antibacterial tests showed positive results in most assays. In turn, most trials did not show any anti-cancer activity. Significant differences were observed between species within the same class, in particular dinoflagellates, which were better represented in this study. These preliminary findings pave the way for an in-depth characterization of the extracts with highest signals in each test, the identification of the compounds responsible for the biological activities found and a further screening of the CCVIEO culture collection.

The aim of this study was to document the biodiversity of cyanobacteria genera isolated from intertidal and subtidal zones in Cabo Verde. The identification of the strains was conducted using a polyphasic study, comprising 16S rRNA gene maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference phylogeny, 16S rRNA identity (p-distance), 16S–23S ITS secondary structure, morphological, and habitat analyses. A total of 51 strains were isolated by micromanipulation and by streaking biomass onto Petri dishes with a solid medium. Seventeen strains were identified as belonging to the Salileptolyngbya genus and five to Leptothoe; sixteen strains were distributed across twelve genera. Thirteen strains were grouped into eight distinct clades, but could not be assigned to any cyanobacterial genus, indicating that they could be described as new cyanobacterial genera in the future. The phylogenies also exhibited isolates LEGE 181157, LEGE 181224, and LEGE 181227 clustered with Gibliniella, but in a separate clade from the G. alaskensis type. The 16S rRNA gene identity values among these new isolates and G. alaskensis ranged from 94.4% to 95.5%. The 16S–23S ITS dissimilarity between LEGE 181224 and G. alaskensis was 9.4%. Morphologically, these three LEGE strains differ from G. alaskensis in that they have trichomes that are never coiled and have diffluent mucilaginous envelopes, whereas G. alaskensis has coiled trichomes with firm sheaths. Based on these strains, we describe here a new species of Gibliniella.

Marine microalgae are a rich reservoir of natural compounds, including bioactives. Nonetheless, these organisms remain fairly unexplored despite their potential biotechnological applications. Culture collections with diverse taxonomic groups and lifestyles are a good source to unlock this potential and discover new molecules for multiple applications such as the treatment of human pathologies or the production of aquaculture species. In the present work extracts from 33 strains (including 20 dinoflagellates, 4 diatoms and 9 strains from other 7 algal classes), cultivated under identical conditions were examined for antiviral, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and anti-cancer activities. Among these, antiviral and anti-inflammatory activities were detected in a few strains while antibacterial tests showed positive results in most assays. In turn, most trials did not show any anti-cancer activity. Wide differences were observed between species within the same class, in particular dinoflagellates which were better represented in this study. These preliminary findings pave the way for in-depth characterization of extracts with highest signals in each test, identification of compounds responsible of the biological activities found, and a further screening of the CCVIEO culture collection.

Cyanobacteria are microorganisms that have remarkable adaptability and can inhabit various types of aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems worldwide, including extreme environments. This group of organisms is considered a rich source of secondary metabolites with potential biotechnological applications and has the capability to produce some potent cyanotoxins that can induce consequences to human health. The Blue Biotechnology and Ecotoxicology Culture Collection (LEGE-CC) is a biological resource center located at the Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research (CIIMAR), comprising more than 1200 different cyanobacterial and microalgae strains. Until now, 36 strains have been reported as producers of cyanotoxins distributed within different cyanobacterial orders. Recently, LEGE-CC has increased in numbers due to the isolation effort that has been made. In this work, a screening of more than 200 cyanobacterial isolates from subaerial and freshwater environments targeted the genes involved in the biosynthesis of cyanotoxins. As expected, genes involved in cylindrospermopsin, saxitoxin, anatoxin and microcystin production were detected by molecular biology tools. The strains where the genes were detected were grown and sent to liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry (LC-MS) to confirm the production of cyanotoxins. As a culture collection, the screening of cyanotoxins is an essential aspect of cyanobacterial research and provides a comprehensive idea of the production of these toxins for future works.