Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 13, 2026

Operation of Laboratory Photobioreactors with Online Growth Measurements and Customizable Light Regimes
Published on: October 28, 2021
Applications of photosynthetic bacteria for medical fields
Ken Sasaki1, Masanori Watanabe, Yoshito Suda
1Materials Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Engineering, Hiroshima Kokusai Gakuin University, 6-20-1 Nakano, Akiku, Hiroshima 739-0321, Japan. sasaki@hkg.ac.jp
Abstract:
The medical applications of photosynthetic bacteria are summarized. Photosynthetic bacteria can produce various types of physiological active substance such as vitamin B(12), ubiquinone (coenzyme Q10), 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA), porphyrins and RNA. In particular, photosynthetic bacterial ALA was commercially applied to cancer diagnosis and treatment. Recently, ALA has been applied to the treatment of acne vulgaris and the suppression of the inflammatory response to coronary and iliac injuries. In addition, the recent applications of RNA from a marine photosynthetic bacterium as a medical supplement for immune improvement and suppression of infection are described. Furthermore, the feasible application of a biopolymer consisting of RNA from a photosynthetic bacterium as a drug delivery system (DDS) to cancer treatment is described.
Related Concept Videos
Anoxygenic Photosynthesis
Anoxygenic Phototrophic Bacteria
Environmental Applications of Microorganisms
Synthetic Biology
Golden rice
Golden rice is a genetically modified...
Microorganisms in Medicine and Therapeutics
Bioremediation

