The Amino Acid Composition of Some Common Marine Algae from Iceland

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Abstract
The total amino acid pool of 10 Rhodophyceae, 10 Phaeophyceae and 4 Chlorophyceae, common in Icelandic waters, was determined in the acid hydrolysates of the seaweed meal on an Jeol JLC-3 BC2 amino acid analyzer. Seventeen of the common amino acids were determined. The results indicated pronounced differences between Rhodophyceae, Chlorophyceae and Phaeophyceae, cysteine being absent in the latter group. The distribution pattern of amino acids within different taxa of the brown algae seems more uniform than within the red algae, in spite of the pronounced differences in the anatomical structure and ecology of the species investigated. In most of the species examined, aspartic and glutamic acid are the major constituents, and next to them alanine. The latter amino acid is predominant in the 2 Porphyra spp. Variations in the cysteine content were detected among the red algae, the highest amounts being present in Plumaria elegans and Cystoclonium purpureum. The average contents of the main acidic amino acids present in red algae exceed the average content found in the brown algae 2-3 times. Among the green algae, Cladophora rupestris deviates from the rest of the species by its high N content and exceptionally high amount of S containing amino acids. In the edible species, the essential amino acids are present in notable quantities.