Duration: 18 months
This proposal applies a waste-to-product approach on Spirulina biomass derived from MELiSSA Photosythetic Comparment (C4b). The objective is to study the biocontrol and biostimulation properties of the whole biomass or its fractions on relevant plants, with or without prior enzymatic hydrolysis as a potential means of bioactivity increase. Algosolis core facility (Nantes Univ., France) will produce Melissa-like biomass under highly controlled culture conditions and conduct enzymatic hydrolysis. ProtMic laboratory (Univ.Mons, Belgium) will test the fractions obtained on tomato and lettuce plants under various conditions and treatments. In addition, industrial residues from the French company AlgoSource which is already commercializing a Spirulina-extract will be fractionated and tested as well. This study aims contributing not only to increasing the recyclability of the Melissa loop, but also opening perspective for terrestrial application through industrial residue valorisation in a circular economy approach.
