Research
Macro partitioning
Marine microalgae are superior sources of long-chain omega-3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) compared to freshwater species, which predominantly contain alpha-linolenic acid (ALA).
If you need EPA and DHA from algae, choose marine-derived sources (e.g., Phaeodactylum, Nannochloropsis). Freshwater algae (e.g., Chlorella, Arthrospira) are rich in protein but primarily contain ALA, not the direct EPA/DHA found in marine strains.
GoodSupportsHIGH confidence
Biomasses of marine species contained high concentrations of polyunsaturated fatty acids, mainly C20:5ω3 and C22:6ω3... The freshwater algae contained high amounts of C18:3ω3 and an even higher amount of C16:0.
Why this rating
Comprehensive fatty acid profiling of 12 strains.
Source
Microalgae of interest as food source: Biochemical composition and digestibility
Alberto Niccolai et al. · Algal Research · 2019
mechanism_only · n=12Cited 384×
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