Chlorella Algae is a single-celled organism and only about 2-10µm in diameter. It does not have a flagella, but it does contain chlorophyll a and b, the photosynthetic pigment in its chloroplast.. With its photosynthesis ability, it could grow and reprroduce with just water, carbon dioxide, sunglight and a small amount of minerals. It could also multiply rapidly under high nitrate or phosphate concentrations. Its name, which contains Greek and Latin roots, means green and small.
Interestinly, Chlorella was considered as one of the solutions to solve the world hunger problem after World War II, during which, the earth’s population was growing at an increasing rate before the agricultural revolution. The algae’s photosynthesis efficiency yielded more protein and B-complex vitamins per unit area of culture than any other plant. Not only was it thought to be able to solve world hunger problems, it was also considered as an “outer space” food. The mass production of Chlorella, however, was not as cheap and feasible as previously thought. A sophisticated process was needed to culture Chlorella under artificiial light and carbonated water in order to preserve the high nutritional content. Another problem was its thick cell wall that had to be broken down before the nutrients can be absorbed by our bodies. Chlorella never became as widely available as desired but there are still Chlorella farms built in the US, Japan Netherlands, Germany, and Israel.
Chlorella contains a complete protein and all the essential amino acids that humans cannot syntheize and must acquire from diet or other sources. Additionally, research has suggested that it has anti-tumor properties in experiments done with mice. Chlorella has also been advertised to be effective for weight control, cancer prevention, and strengthening the immune system. Moreover, studies suggest that Chlorella has dioxin detoxication effects in both humans and animals. It was found to have the ability to accelerate the healing of wounds and healing from radiation exposure, reduce high blood pressure and serum cholesterol levels
References: (1) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chlorella (2) http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/113518/Chlorella
