Vol. 12, Issue 3 (2023)

Microalgae are an important source of biologically active metabolites with pharmacological significance. A preliminary study was conducted to identify the therapeutic compounds using phytochemical screening and micronutrient analysis for food fortification. In this research, the methanolic extract of Sargassum wightii (SW) and Kappaphycus alvarezii (KA) was screened for micronutrient, trace element and phytochemical content. The screening was done by Inductively coupled optical emission spectrometry (ICPOES) for minerals, inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICPMS) for Trace elements and Gas chromatography Mass Spectrometry (GCMS) for phytochemical screening. The results suggest that KA and SW possess high sodium (8079.00 & 7910.53 ppm), potassium (7543.96 & 7871.84 ppm) and manganese content (5792.50 & 6277.70 ppm) respectively. The major phytochemicals present were Hexadecenoic acid, methyl ester, heptadecane, naphthalene and 10-octadecanoic acid (Z, Z)-, methyl esters. The heavy metals found were above the permissible limit and are to be reduced to apply in food application. Therefore, these findings suggest that SW and KA extracts have potential applications in agriculture and pharmacology