Nuclear transformation and functional gene expression in the oleaginous microalga Monoraphidium neglectum.

Photosynthetic microalgae hold great promise as non-food feedstocks for the sustainable production of a range of bio-products and genetic engineering is an increasingly important strategy to improve the natural cellular features. For the vast majority of microalgal strains, however, genetic engineering is not yet possible and the establishment of efficient genetic tools for a broad range of microalgal species is an important task to reach biotechnological success. Stable DNA transformation is one of the crucial steps for most genetic engineering approaches.