3.1. Culture collection of native microalgae
The sampling protocol and isolation procedure used here was
successful in establishing a culture collection of over one hundredlocal microalgae (Fig. 1). Microscopic examination demonstrated
that a high degree of diversity had been obtained with a variety
of microalgae from different algal groups including cyanobacteria,
green algae, and diatoms, with the majority apparently being green
algae (Chlorophyta). Some representative photomicrographs are
shown in Fig. S1. Following isolation, 100 strains were screened
using a high throughput 12 well microplate method for growth potential
and lipid production in wastewater, and compared to what
was observed when they were grown on synthetic medium (BBM)
(Fig. 1). Most of the isolates grew robustly in synthetic BBM medium
in comparison to WW. However, as discussed in what follows,
some strains grew better on WW, and others grew rapidly and constantly
under all experimental conditions.