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This algae is stressed. And we can tell it’s stressed
because it’s doing something that you might also do when you find yourself
in a difficult situation. It’s turning red. But while blushing brightly for everyone to see
might make your situation worse, this algae can do something else that sounds,
honestly, very appealing: it can curl up in a ball and just wait out the worst of it.
This algae is called Haematococcus, and it is not, physiologically speaking,
turning red through the same mechanisms that you and I do when we are stressed and blushing.
We flush with blood. Meanwhile, the Haematococcus does not have blood. But depending on the state of
your ancient Greek, you might recognize its name translates loosely to “blood berries,”
a name that seems fitting for a round, reddish organism like this one.
But as poetically sanguinary as the name is, Haematococcus flushes with something else
altogether, a chemical we can see traveling through the algae and up the food chain,
until it winds up on our own plates. But before we get to the dinner table,
let us talk about where we got our Haematococcus: from a centuries old cemetery in Warsaw, Poland,
filled with beautiful sculptures and birdbaths. For James, our master of microscopes, it is
important to respect the tombs there. So, don’t worry, these microbes don’t have particularly
spooky origins. He’s there for the birdbaths, where the algae lines the surfaces like rust.
The Haematococcus likely arrived at the birdbath thanks to the birds themselves,
and there it would have remained until maybe another bird came along, except this time,
your favorite microbe hunter came first. In addition to birdbaths, Haematococcus are
often found in transient pools of freshwater, like puddles after a rainfall. And as you can
see on your screen, not all Haematococcus are red. Plenty of them are green, which makes sense
because Haematococcus is a member of the phylum Chlorophyta and that phylum is full of many
other unicellular green algae like the volvox. And as algae, Haematococcus are green,
photosynthetic, and very easy to eat, which makes them a simple solid foundation for an ecosystem.
But even seemingly simple creatures have requests of the world around them,
whether that’s for certain levels of light, or a particular temperature. And if you were to say,
go to a hotel and your room was 100 degrees, you got a few solid options to fix that problem.
You could find the thermostat. And if that doesn’t work, you could complain to the manager
or even just go find another place to stay. But those are not great options for the
Haematococcus. There’s no thermostat to change, there’s no manager and if the
temperature gets too high, there’s only so much a single-celled body can do to survive.
So instead, the Haematococcus does what I’m sure many of us wish we could do when we were
in an uncomfortable situation: it takes a little bit of a break, forming a cyst
that allows it to rest and survive until conditions are good again.
When you’re looking at this mixture of Haematococcus, you’re looking at a gathering
of algae in different phases of their lives. The most active ones are called macrozooids,
or zoospores. They might be shaped like spheres, ellipsoids, or even pears. And they’re encased
in a thick gelatinous wall, with two flagella extending out in front to zip the algae around.
But most importantly, here at this stage, the algae is green.
The Haematococcus rarely reproduces sexually, and when it’s a macrozooid, it divides rapidly,
forming around 2 to 32 copies of itself. But it makes sense to move around and make more of
yourself when conditions are good. What happens though when you’re in a comfortable pool of water
one day, and in much more dire straits the next? Well, for the Haematococcus, this is the point at
which it all begins to change. The algae sheds its flagella, layers up its wall,
and shifts into a ball. This is the Haematococcus as a palmella, a resting cell.
But if stress has taught me anything, it is that things can always get worse.
And for this little cell, it can get hotter or saltier or just too bright. And when that happens,
the palmella morphs into an aplanospore. Its walls become even heavier duty,
shielding it from the outside. But most striking, this is when the haematococcus becomes red.
The red is practical, the product of a chemical called astaxanthin.
Astaxanthin is a carotenoid, a type of reddish yellow pigment found in plants and microbes. But
it’s more than just a pretty color. Astaxanthin is an extremely powerful antioxidant, protecting
the cyst from potential damage as it rests. You’ve probably seen astaxanthin in real life,
except you might not have called it that. You might
have just called it “pink,” or “salmon pink.” Astaxanthin is found in plants, fungi, bacteria,
and yes, in algae. And haematococcus, is considered to be one of the best natural producers
of astaxanthin, able to produce up to 5% of its dry weight in astaxanthin. For comparison, another
astaxanthin-producing algae called Chlorella makes around 0.001% of its dry weight in astaxanthin
Now the reason we find astaxanthin in so many animals is because,
algae make for good food, whether you are a shrimp, salmon, or flamingo.
It’s striking that the color we call “salmon pink” is a sign of both the salmon’s contentment
and the algae’s demise. Perhaps we should start calling it “haematococcus pink” instead, an
acknowledgement of the work of the haematococcus, which endures so long after its death.
It would be a fitting tribute after all to a color you might have eaten a few times yourself.
The salmon, sure, which might have fed on synthetic astaxanthin or algae. But even
the chicken eggs you buy might have gotten their yolk color boosted by algae added to chicken feed.
Astaxanthin has its uses outside of our food, whether in our cosmetics or nutraceuticals.
And while much of that is synthetic, a copy we’ve learned to make by studying the chemistry of
astaxanthin, there’s also a push in the market for “natural” products, a push that has led to renewed
interest in the haematococcus algae and its wondrous ability to produce its own astaxanthin.
But for the haematococcus that’s just something weird going on in the outside world, a factor
far beyond its control and its interest. Whatever comes its way--whether it's a scientist, a bird,
or a fish--all the haematococcus is concerned with is its own survival. What belongs to the algae
will one day belong to another organism, passed on through chemistry and made into something new
Thank you for coming on this journey with us as we explore the unseen world that surrounds us.
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