This volume aims to provide a detailed synthesis of the major roles that algae play in human life. The book is divided into four parts covering both the valuable and detrimental effects of algae and the final section considers their current and future applications to industry and space exploration.

"This volume explores and explains the vast uses and benefits of algae as food, feed, and fuel. It covers the most advanced applications of algae in the food and feed industries and for environmental sustainability. With chapters written by experts and which were extensively reviewed by many well-known subject experts and professionals, Phycobiotechnology: Biodiversity and Biotechnology of Algae and Algal Products for Food, Feed, and Fuel provides an abundance of valuable information. Algae are a genetically diverse group of organisms with a wide range of physiological and biochemical characteristics that have unique capabilities in the fields of agriculture, pharmaceuticals, industry, and environment. Algae hold the potential to become the planet's next major source of energy and a vital part of the solution for climate change and dependence on fossil fuels. Many varieties of algae are also known to be an abundant source of vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients that can boost the human immune system. The algal industry is a booming sector and will continue to grow, and the editors state, it would not be wrong to call algae the most potent organism of the century due to its many applications and economic value. Key features of the book: Looks at the diversity and distribution of common seaweeds and microalgal biomarkers for hydrocarbon exploration Reviews microalgal bioactive compounds, biomolecules, and biofuels for sustainable development Discusses the health benefits of fucoidan (found in many species of brown seaweed) and the role of cyanobacteria against various human diseases Provides an evaluation of protocols for biomass recovery and lipid extraction by microalgae Defines DNA rearrangements in cyanobacterial nitrogen fixation Presents systematic insights into the biotechnological applications of microalgae and exploitation of omega-3 fatty acids Explores genetic engineering tools and metabolic engineering aspects of algae This volume will be a rich and welcome reference for academicians, researchers, industry professionals, and postgraduate students in the fields of phycology, ecology, environmental biology, botany, microbiology, and biotechnology"--

Algal biotechnology has come a long way since the early days of agronomy/mariculture for food use and the recovery of agars, carrageenans and alginates. Our increasing knowledge of algal physiology and biochemistry, combined with genetic engineering is opening up new vistas. The application of the ability to grow microalgae to very high yields in bioreactors, to a percentage of a theoretical maximum, as opposed to ponds, holds great promise for the future of algal biotechnology. At the macroalgal side possibilities on the horizon involve their use as a source of antifoulants, the possible use of sulfated polysaccharides in biomedical applications and the possibility of genetically engineering macroalgae to provide deterrence to microbial pathogens in mariculture. In the final analysis the expanded future of applying algal biotechnology for good, new and imaginative use must lie in ensuring that good science is tied to good economics. The present volume is a compilation of 20 chapters which discuss on the industrial applications in the field of biological nitrogen fixation, nutraceuticals and other bioactive compounds. Recent advances in cyanobacteria for bioactive compounds, active against a number of disease causing bacteria, viruses and fungi, their significant potential for colorants, polysaccharides, pharmaceuticals and pharmacological probes and also in the field of environment protection have been reflected in most of the chapters. This book will open a new vista in the field of algal biotechnology. The aim of bringing out of this book is to bring together the multi-disciplinary researches going around the world in the area of Algal Biotechnology and to disseminate information on the latest information on algae and this has been made possible only by the contribution of articles by the nationally and internationally acclaimed authors. The book will be useful to the students, teachers, scientists and researchers from the different branches of microbiology, plant science and biotechnology. Contents Chapter 1: The Algal Industry Survey by Mark Edwards; Chapter 2: Prospective in Diatom Nanotechnology by Jannendra Rath, Sikha Mandal and Bijaya Kumar Padhi; Chapter 3: Programmed Cell Death: An Integral Event in the Development of Algae and Higher Organisms by Shiv Shanker Pandey, Vivek Ambashtha and Budhi Sagar Tiwari; Chapter 4: Spirulina: The Superfood and Medicine by Preeti Das, A.K. Mishra and Mihir K. Das; Chapter 5: Application of Seaweeds as Food: A Scenario by P.V. Subba Rao, K. Ganesan and K. Suresh Kumar; Chapter 6: UV-B Radiation-Induced Stress and Protection Strategies in Cyanobacteria by R.P. Sinha, M.B. Tyagi, Sushil Kumar and Ashok Kumar; Chapter 7: Growth Response of Cyanobacteria from Sandy Soil and Mine Waste Burdened Soil to Different Environmental Variables by Pramila Tripathy and S.P. Adhikary; Chapter 8: The Impact of Fungicides on Rice Field Cyanobacteria by Anshuman Das and Mihir Kumar Das; Chapter 9: Role of Blue Green Algae in Rice Production by Y.V. Singh; Chapter 10: Biotechnological Relevance of Microbes in Agriculture by Rajan Kumar Gupta; Chapter 11: Lipids and Fatty Acids from Marine Algae: A Potential Biofuel Resource by S. Chakraborty and T. Bhattacharya; Chapter 12: Algal Biodiesel: Procedures and Resources for Laboratory Study by Simrat Kaur, H.K. Gogoi, R.B. Srivastava and M.C. Kalita; Chapter 13: Industrial Utilization of Algal Fatty Acids by S.B. Padhi, P.K. Swain, S.K. Behera and G. Behera; Chapter 14: Cyanobacterial Toxins by Anjana Pandey and Archana Tiwari; Chapter 15: Algae and the Human Affairs in the 21st Century by Surendra Singh, Shipra Das and Anuradha Tiwari; Chapter 16: Responses of Rice Field Cyanobacteria to Insecticides by Mihir Kumar Das; Chapter 17: Cyanobacterial Toxins and Public Health by Mukesh Kumar; Chapter 18: Cyanobacteria for Biofertilizer, Bioremediation and Bioactive Compounds by Kaushal Kishore Choudhary; Chapter 19: Production of Nutraceuticals and Antioxidant Enzymes in a Tropical Food Alga Nostochopsis lobatus by Usha Pandey; Chapter 20: Bioremediation of Heavy Metals by Microalgae by V.D. Pandey.