1. Introduction
Cyanobacteria have now emerged as a potential bioresource
for food and pharmaceutical industries (Thajuddin
and Subramaniam, 2005; Parikh and Madamwar, 2006).
Nostochopsis lobatus, a filamentous diazotrophic cyanobacterium,
grows luxuriantly attached to the rock surfaces in
the form of mucilaginous balls in fresh water lakes and
slow moving streams of Indian tropics and subtropics.
The advantage of its natural growth in the form of mucilaginous
balls of unialgal population is fully utilized by
the local tribes as a dietary supplement. Researches conducted
in our laboratory have indicated N. lobatus to be
a rich source of protein, carbohydrates and fatty acids
(Pandey, 2003).