OICC Press International Journal of Recycling of Organic Waste in Agriculture 2251-7715 1 1 2012 11 13 Mixotrophic and heterotrophic growth of some microalgae using extract of fungal-treated wheat bran 10.1186/2251-7715-1-12 EN Mostafa M EL-Sheekh Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta, Egypt Mohamed Y Bedaiwy Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta, Egypt Mohamed E Osman Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta, Egypt Mona M Ismail Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta, Egypt Journal Article 2012 11 13 Background In this study, wheat bran, an agricultural waste, was utilized as a low-cost carbon source for algal cultivation. Results Treatment of lignocellulosic waste by two fungal species (Pleurotus ostreatus or Trichoderma viride) caused the accumulation of reducing sugar at a relatively high concentration (50.58 and 54.30 mg/g wheat bran) after 7 days of incubation, respectively. The soluble products of treated wheat bran increased the growth, carbohydrate, and protein contents of both Chlorella vulgaris and Scenedesmus obliquus under mixotrophic and heterotrophic conditions. Conclusions The obtained data suggest that soluble product of treated wheat bran could be used as an efficient medium for the mixotrophic and heterotrophic growth of both algal species.