Determination of Mineral, Fatty Acid, and Soluble Carbohydrate Profiles of Green Algae Ulva rigida, Chaetomorpha linum, Codium fragile, Caulerpa prolifera and Caulerpa racemosa f. requienii Collected from Türkiye Coasts

The nutritional properties of five different green macroalgae including Ulva rigida, Chaetomorpha linum, Codium fragile, Caulerpa prolifera and Caulerpa racemosa f. requienii from Turkey were investigated. The chemical composition of green macroalgae was varied, with ash, crude fiber, protein, lipid and carbohydrate ranging from 40.71 to 52.82%, 12.02-17.56%, 4.40-26.19%, 0.57-3.85% and 4.58-42.28% in dry weight, respectively. The fatty acid contents of the algae were quite variable and palmitic acid (C16) was found to be the primary fatty acid for all the samples with a value of more than 49.61%. Palmitic acid was followed by oleic acid, which is a monounsaturated fatty acid. This study revealed that green algae are rich in important soluble carbohydrates such as myo-inositol and glucose, health promoting unsaturated fatty acids (mainly oleic acid) and essential macroelements such as potassium, magnesium and microelements such as iron, zinc and selenium. The results of the current study contribute to a better understanding of macroalgae and encourage their use in food-related applications.