Extracellular carotenoid production and fatty acids profile of Parachlorella kessleri under increased CO concentrations.

Large-scale cultivations of photoautotrophic microorganisms represent a very promising and potentially cost-effective alternative for climate change mitigation, when associated to the co-production of high value bioproducts, such as fatty acids and carotenoids, considering the growing demand for natural products. During microalgae cultivation, CO enrichment is a requirement to reach high productivities, although high CO levels are normally stressful to microalgae. On the other hand, cellular stress is a well reported strategy to induce carotenoid and fatty acids production.

Spotlight on the delivery of photosensitizers: different approaches for photodynamic-based therapies.

Nanomedicine development allowed the discovery of new photosensitizers (PS) and drug delivery systems (DDS) to overcome current issues on phototherapy. Nano-engineered materials have the potential to improve the solubility of PS, control drug pharmacokinetics, decreasing side effects, increasing bioavailability, and overcoming multidrug resistance. A recent approach is the co-delivery of PS with other therapeutic agents in a multimodal platform for synergic and improved results.