Low-temperature plasma mutagenesis breeding of Chlorella sorokiniana mutant strains for efficient carbon...

In this study, low-temperature plasma was used to achieve mutagenesis of Chlorella sorokiniana and two mutants with good traits were successfully obtained after several rounds of screening. The results showed that the biomass of the mutants was increased by 15.31% and 19.79%, respectively, compared with the wild-type strain, and the lipid content was enhanced by 8.90% and 2.31%, respectively. The photosynthetic performance, enzyme activities, NADPH content, carbon fixation rate, and nitrogen assimilation efficiency were all improved. Transcriptome sequencing analysis indicated that mutations in genes associated with the central carbon metabolism pathway underwent modulation as a major factor influencing the physiological performance of mutants. Therefore, this study demonstrates that low-temperature plasma may be used as a promising and efficient tool for acquiring microalgae mutants with desired high value-added products and improved carbon fixation rate.