Algae and Plants
11
Description: Thalli of this species are
up to 0.5 cm long and consist of bright to
dark green monostromatic blades with
an irregularly rounded, ovate shape.
Blades, devoid of stripes, are attached
to the substratum by means of a rim
of the frond or free and are 17–20 µm
thick. Thalli have a smooth to irregular
margin. Each cell has a stellate plastid
with a pyrenoid in the center. Nuclear
structures are primitive with little differentiation, and there are no motile
reproductive cells. It is a food species
(Iwamoto, 1984).
Nutritional Facts
Proximate Composition (g/100 g DM)
Protein
Fat
CHO a
Ash
42.03
1.76
45.9
4.7
a Carbohydrate.
Minerals (g/100 g DM)
Ca
P
Fe a
1.03
0.7
99
a mg%.
Source: Data from Johnston (1970).
Cladophora sp.
Phylum: Chlorophyta
Class: Ulvophyceae
Order: Cladophorales
Family: Cladophoraceae
Common name: Mekong weed.
Distribution: Cosmopolitan in temperate and tropical regions (AlgaeBase).
Habitat: Attached to rocks or timbers submerged in shallow lakes and
streams; freshwater, brackish, and
marine conditions.
Description: This unidentified species is reticulated and filamentous. It
is coarse in appearance, with regular branching filaments that have
cross-walls separating multinucleate
segments. There are two multicellular
stages in its life cycle—a haploid gametophyte and a diploid sporophyte—
which look highly similar. It grows in
the form of a tuft or ball with filaments
that may range up to 13 cm (5 in.) in
length. If attached, branching rhizoids
arise from basal cells and other cells
in the basal region, or a simple discoid
holdfast is produced. Chloroplasts are
parietal, either densely packed discoid or united in a reticulum. Cells are
multinucleate. This species is edible
(AlgaeBase, 2000).
Nutritional Facts
Proximate Composition (% DM)
Protein Lipid Ash Moisture Fiber CHO a
10.71
2.04 15.29 10.98 23.05 60.98
a Carbohydrate.
Vitamins (mg/100 g)
A
B1 B2
C
E
0.33 0.05 0.05 1.89 5.97
Minerals (mg/100 g)
Ca
Fe
K
Mg
P
Zn
6.631 29.91 2.658 241.60 69.17 1.91
Carotenoid (µg/g)
Beta-carotene Lutein Zeaxanthin
20.01
172.80
24.62
Source: Data from Khuantrairong
and Traichaiyaporn (2011).
11
Description: Thalli of this species are
up to 0.5 cm long and consist of bright to
dark green monostromatic blades with
an irregularly rounded, ovate shape.
Blades, devoid of stripes, are attached
to the substratum by means of a rim
of the frond or free and are 17–20 µm
thick. Thalli have a smooth to irregular
margin. Each cell has a stellate plastid
with a pyrenoid in the center. Nuclear
structures are primitive with little differentiation, and there are no motile
reproductive cells. It is a food species
(Iwamoto, 1984).
Nutritional Facts
Proximate Composition (g/100 g DM)
Protein
Fat
CHO a
Ash
42.03
1.76
45.9
4.7
a Carbohydrate.
Minerals (g/100 g DM)
Ca
P
Fe a
1.03
0.7
99
a mg%.
Source: Data from Johnston (1970).
Cladophora sp.
Phylum: Chlorophyta
Class: Ulvophyceae
Order: Cladophorales
Family: Cladophoraceae
Common name: Mekong weed.
Distribution: Cosmopolitan in temperate and tropical regions (AlgaeBase).
Habitat: Attached to rocks or timbers submerged in shallow lakes and
streams; freshwater, brackish, and
marine conditions.
Description: This unidentified species is reticulated and filamentous. It
is coarse in appearance, with regular branching filaments that have
cross-walls separating multinucleate
segments. There are two multicellular
stages in its life cycle—a haploid gametophyte and a diploid sporophyte—
which look highly similar. It grows in
the form of a tuft or ball with filaments
that may range up to 13 cm (5 in.) in
length. If attached, branching rhizoids
arise from basal cells and other cells
in the basal region, or a simple discoid
holdfast is produced. Chloroplasts are
parietal, either densely packed discoid or united in a reticulum. Cells are
multinucleate. This species is edible
(AlgaeBase, 2000).
Nutritional Facts
Proximate Composition (% DM)
Protein Lipid Ash Moisture Fiber CHO a
10.71
2.04 15.29 10.98 23.05 60.98
a Carbohydrate.
Vitamins (mg/100 g)
A
B1 B2
C
E
0.33 0.05 0.05 1.89 5.97
Minerals (mg/100 g)
Ca
Fe
K
Mg
P
Zn
6.631 29.91 2.658 241.60 69.17 1.91
Carotenoid (µg/g)
Beta-carotene Lutein Zeaxanthin
20.01
172.80
24.62
Source: Data from Khuantrairong
and Traichaiyaporn (2011).