Cell wall for higher growth rates in diatoms. In brown algae, phlorotannins may be a constituent of the cell walls. The group Oomycetes, also known as water molds, are saprotrophic plant pathogens like fungi. Until recently they were widely believed to be fungi, but structural and molecular evidence has led to their reclassification as heterokonts, related to autotrophic brown algae and diatoms. Unlike fungi, oomycetes typically possess cell walls of cellulose and glucans rather than chitin, although some genera (such as "Achlya" and "Saprolegnia") do have chitin in their walls. The fraction of cellulose in the walls is no more than 4
Cell encapsulation and agarose have also been employed. Several groups have extensively studied several natural and synthetic polymers with the goal of developing the most suitable biomaterial for cell microencapsulation. Extensive work has been done using alginates which are regarded as the most suitable biomaterials for cell microencapsulation due to their abundance, excellent biocompatibility and biodegradability properties. Alginate is a natural polymer which can be extracted from seaweed and bacteria with numerous compositions based on the isolation source. Alginate is not free from all criticism. Some researchers believe that alginates with high-M content could produce an inflammatory response and an abnormal cell