Extending the limits of algal growth and stress resilience – the desert alga Chlorella ohadii as an emerging model
- 1Systems Plant Metabolism, Faculty of Biology RPTU 67663 Kaiserslautern Germany
- 2Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, The Alexander Silberman Institute of Life Sciences The Hebrew University of Jerusalem 91904 Jerusalem Israel
- 3School of Plant Sciences and Food Security, The George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences Tel Aviv University Ramat Aviv 97801 Tel Aviv Israel
Abstract
Since its isolation from the sand dunes of the Negev Desert over a decade ago, the unicellular green alga Chlorella ohadii has turned into a reference organism for studying photosynthesis, metabolism, and abiotic stress response. Much of C. ohadii's appeal as an emerging model lies in its robust fast growth, comparable to yeast even as a photoautotroph. Hence, the detailed physiological, biochemical, and molecular studies that followed rapidly, together with extensive omics datasets, have revealed several of its intriguing biological features. We provide a historical perspective unfolding the rise of this species from survival in the harsh desert crusts to a widely used standard for photodamage resistance, dynamic metabolism, and elevated growth and photosynthetic performance, frequently with prominent relevance for plant research. We also spotlight how this case study enables exploration of photosynthesis in harsh habitats. Further, we discuss challenges in the development of genetic tools for the growing community studying C. ohadii, and current biotechnological approaches aiming to exploit its prime genetic potential. Finally, we refer to guidelines of good practice for C. ohadii research as a highly stress‐resistant model.
Related
- Effect of microalgal biostimulants (Chlorella vulgaris and Arthrospira platensis) on the growth performance of Pak Choy in a hydroponic system.
- Editorial: Enhancing plant stress resilience: innovative roles of plant growth-promoting bacteria (PGPB) in sustainable agriculture and crop protection
- MAFA drives pancreatic islet maturation through coordination of cell growth, metabolic maturation, and resilience to stress.
- Bacillus strains enhance wheat growth and resilience to drought and Fusarium stress
- Stomatal and xylem plasticity, not growth rate, determines white spruce resilience to warmer and drier climates
BibTeX
@article{geffen2026extending,
title = {{Extending the limits of algal growth and stress resilience – the desert alga Chlorella ohadii as an emerging model}},
author = {Or Geffen and Hilla Matityahu and Iftach Yacoby and Michal Breker and Haim Treves},
journal = {The New Phytologist},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1111/nph.71587},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.71587},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Extending the limits of algal growth and stress resilience – the desert alga Chlorella ohadii as an emerging model
AU - Or Geffen
AU - Hilla Matityahu
AU - Iftach Yacoby
AU - Michal Breker
AU - Haim Treves
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - The New Phytologist
DO - 10.1111/nph.71587
UR - https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.71587
AB - Since its isolation from the sand dunes of the Negev Desert over a decade ago, the unicellular green alga Chlorella ohadii has turned into a reference organism for studying photosynthesis, metabolism, and abiotic stress response. Much of C. ohadii's appeal as an emerging model lies in its robust fast growth, comparable to yeast even as a photoautotroph. Hence, the detailed physiological, biochemical, and molecular studies that followed rapidly, together with extensive omics datasets, have revealed several of its intriguing biological features. We provide a historical perspective unfolding the rise of this species from survival in the harsh desert crusts to a widely used standard for photodamage resistance, dynamic metabolism, and elevated growth and photosynthetic performance, frequently with prominent relevance for plant research. We also spotlight how this case study enables exploration of photosynthesis in harsh habitats. Further, we discuss challenges in the development of genetic tools for the growing community studying C. ohadii, and current biotechnological approaches aiming to exploit its prime genetic potential. Finally, we refer to guidelines of good practice for C. ohadii research as a highly stress‐resistant model.
SN - 0028-646X
SN - 1469-8137
ER -