Edible seaweed Edible seaweed Edible seaweed, or sea vegetables, are algae that can be eaten and used in the preparation of food. They typically contain high amounts of fiber. They may belong to one of several groups of multicellular algae: the red algae, green algae, and brown algae. Seaweeds are also harvested or cultivated for the extraction of polysaccharides such as alginate, agar and carrageenan, gelatinous substances collectively known as hydrocolloids or phycocolloids. Hydrocolloids have attained commercial significance, especially in food production as food additives. The food industry exploits the gelling, water-retention, emulsifying and other physical properties of these hydrocolloids. Most edible
Edible algae vaccine Edible algae vaccine Edible algae based vaccination is a vaccination strategy under preliminary research to combine a genetically engineered sub-unit vaccine and an immunologic adjuvant into "Chlamydomonas reinhardtii" microalgae. Microalgae can be freeze-dried and administered orally. While spirulina is accepted as safe to consume, edible algal vaccines remain under basic research with unconfirmed safety and efficacy as of 2018. In 2003, the first documented algal-based vaccine antigen was reported, consisting of a foot-and-mouth disease antigen complexed with the cholera toxin subunit B which delivered the antigen to digestion mucosal surfaces in mice. The vaccine was grown in "C. reinhardtii" algae