%0 Journal Article
%T A Toxicological Evaluation of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, a Green Algae
%A Ad¨¦l V¨¦rtesi
%A Erzs¨¦bet B¨¦res
%A G¨˘bor Hirka
%A Ilona Pasics Szakonyin¨¦
%A John R. Endres
%A R¨®bert Gl¨˘vits
%A Timothy S. Murbach
%J International Journal of Toxicology
%@ 1092-874X
%D 2018
%R 10.1177/1091581817746109
%X There is a current worldwide interest in developing novel sustainable nonanimal nutritional sources, and one such source is the green algae Chlamydomonas reinhardtii, the only green algae that has been studied as a model organism for many biological processes ranging from photosynthesis to flagellar movement. However, its potential as a safe nutritional source for use in various foods has not been thoroughly investigated. To assess the safety of C reinhardtii for use as a nutritional human food ingredient, in accordance with internationally accepted standards, the genotoxic potential and repeated-dose oral toxicity of the dried C reinhardtii (THN 6) algal biomass was investigated. The following studies were conducted: (1) a bacterial reverse mutation test, (2) an in vitro mammalian chromosomal aberration test, (3) an in vivo mammalian micronucleus test, and (4) a 28-day repeated-dose oral toxicity study in rats. No evidence of mutagenicity or genotoxic activity was observed in the first 3 tests under the applied test systems. In the 28-day study, male and female Hsd.Han Wistar rats were exposed to daily doses of 0, 1,000, 2,000, and 4,000 mg/kg bw by gavage. Following 28 days of continuous exposure, no mortality or treatment-related adverse effects were observed and no target organs were identified. Therefore, a no observed adverse effect level was concluded as 4,000 mg/kg bw/day, the highest dose tested
%K Chlamydomonas reinhardtii
%K algal biomass
%K green algae
%K safety
%K mutagenicity
%K toxicity
%K NOAEL
%U https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1091581817746109