Cyanobacteria: Harnessing Nature's Versatile Allies in Pharmaceuticals, Food, and Agriculture

Blue-green algae (cyanobacteria) are considered the most primitive photosynthetic prokaryotes which appeared on this planet during the Precambrian period. The application of cyanobacteria showed immense potential in wastewater and industrial effluent treatment, bioremediation of aquatic and terrestrial habitats, chemical industries, biofertilizers, food, feed, and fuel, etc. Spanish local fishermen collected blue-green masses from the lakes that were prepared as a dry cake, known as ‘tecuitlatl’. Spirulina, chlorella and Noctoc cyanobacterial species are being used as food supplements which are full of nutrients such as protein, and vitamins, and also have medicinal values like antiviral, antibacterial, anti-cancerous ECT. Besides, several Cyanobacterial species are also being used as biofertilizers in agriculture, and also for chelating toxic heavy metal ions for removing them from soil which is commonly known as bioremediation of soil pollutants. In viewing the “one platform” solution, nature has provided for all the environmental and medical problems in Cyanobacteria, there is a need to practically implement the use of cyanobacteria in the lives of common man. This chapter not only shades lite on the nutritional but also medicinal values of different species of cyanobacteria but also briefly discussed the new discovery of Exo-polysaccharides (metabolites) of cyanobacteria which are considered as one of the important group of biopolymers having significant ecological, industrial and biotechnological importance. Due to their structural complexity, versatility and valuable biological properties, they are now emerging as high-value compounds. However, poor understanding of their complex structural properties, and lack of concrete information regarding the genes encoding the proteins involved in the EPS biosynthetic pathways, their process of production and the associated factors controlling their structural stability, strongly limit their commercialization and applications in the various fields of biotechnology.