In Vitro Cytotoxicity and Cell Migration Activities of Lipid Extracted from Chlorella Sorokiniana Shihira & R.W.Krauss Exposed to Nitrogen Stress

Microalgae are used as raw materials in many areas thanks to their valuable biochemical contents. Different environmental conditions significantly affect the biochemical composition of microalgae, and in case of stress, changes are observed in events such as photosynthetic activity in cells, biomass productivity, or pigment formation. Nitrogen is one of the most important nutrient sources for microalgae growth, and in case of nitrogen starvation, the lipid accumulation of microalgae such as Chlorella increases significantly. Although there have been many different studies on the potential use of biochemical components of microalgae, information about the effects and mechanisms of algal oils on wound healing is very limited. Wounds are an important public health problem and carry the risk of infection. New and effective natural alternatives are needed due to reasons such as the long time required for the repair of damaged skin, side effects of existing drugs, or causing allergies or resistance. In this study, the oil produced by C. sorokiniana microalgae in the case of nitrogen starvation and the oils produced in the environment of the control group without nitrogen deprivation were extracted. The in vitro cytotoxic effects of both oils at eight different concentrations (500, 250, 125, 62.5, 31.25, 15.62, 7.81, 3.90 µg/mL) on the viability of the L929 fibroblast cell line were investigated. No toxic effects were found at any dose studied, and the most effective and lowest dose that increased vitality was determined to be 15.62 µg/ml. In vitro cell stratching test results revealed that the wound gap closed gradually in the control group, and the oil extract extracted in the case of nitrogen starvation significantly accelerated wound closure over time. It is important to elucidate the therapeutic potential of these oils with further studies and to explain the changes in the oil composition of microalgae in case of stress with advanced analyses.