Snow Algae Powder - The Mystery of Red Snow
Algae that survive in Alpine snow I
n summer, persisting snow fields on high mountains are sometimes tinged with a red, pink colour. This phenomenon is caused by snow algae. It is a unicellular member of the
green algae that changed colour by producing carotenoids for protection against high ultraviolet radiation. Snow algae are extremophile species adapted to survive on Alpine and polar snow fields. The spores contain high amounts of astaxanthin carotenoids.
Sustainable production of snow algae in bio-reactors A tube photobioreactor has been developed to produce raw material from snow algae. In the initial process, light and aeration was used to grow the green algae for three weeks, doing photosynthesis in order to reach biomass. In the second stage, nutrients were reduced and light strongly increased over a two week period to induce the formation of carotenoids resulting in the red coloured spore form. Snow algae harvested at this stage were homogenized at 1200 bar in a phospholipid solution to open the cells and to form liposomes with encapsulated water- and oil-soluble algae
actives (snow algae extract). The liposomal extract was carefully coated onto maltodextrin in a spray granulation process (Snow Algae Powder).
Stimulation of Klotho activity for caloric restriction mimetic anti-ageing effects The extremophile snow algae were then tested for anti-ageing effects in cultures of skin cells and also in clinical studies. The algae extract was found to stimulate the longevity gene Klotho and to activate the protein AMPK which is a master switch in cellular energy metabolism. Klotho, named after a Greek goddess of fate, is a longevity-
related gene, discovered in 1997. Mice that are deficient in Klotho display an accelerated ageing phenotype, on the other hand, when overexpressed, the gene extends lifespan by 30%. The Klotho protein mediates its longevity effects by inhibiting the insulin/IGF-1 signaling. Suppression of this signaling pathway is regarded as central mechanism in the calorie restriction-induced longevity phenomenon. In a replicative ageing model with primary human fibroblast cells, the
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