{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,7]],"date-time":"2026-05-07T04:28:06Z","timestamp":1778128086839,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":31,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"16","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,8]],"date-time":"2023-08-08T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1691452800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Funda\u00e7\u00e3o para a Ci\u00eancia e Tecnologia, I. P (FCT)","award":["UIDB\/04292\/2020"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["UIDB\/04292\/2020"]}]},{"name":"Funda\u00e7\u00e3o para a Ci\u00eancia e Tecnologia, I. P (FCT)","award":["UIDP\/04292\/2020"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["UIDP\/04292\/2020"]}]},{"name":"Funda\u00e7\u00e3o para a Ci\u00eancia e Tecnologia, I. 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P (FCT)","award":["EAPA_451\/2016"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["EAPA_451\/2016"]}]},{"name":"European Regional Development Fund through the Interreg Atlantic Area Program","award":["UIDB\/04292\/2020"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["UIDB\/04292\/2020"]}]},{"name":"European Regional Development Fund through the Interreg Atlantic Area Program","award":["UIDP\/04292\/2020"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["UIDP\/04292\/2020"]}]},{"name":"European Regional Development Fund through the Interreg Atlantic Area Program","award":["LA\/P\/0069\/2020"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["LA\/P\/0069\/2020"]}]},{"name":"European Regional Development Fund through the Interreg Atlantic Area Program","award":["EAPA_451\/2016"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["EAPA_451\/2016"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Applied Sciences"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The important purpose of this work is to evaluate the biostimulant activity of the algae Chlorella vulgaris and Ulva lactuca extracts on the crop plants Lactuca sativa, to compare the effect of these two green algae on plant growth and development as a part of a sustainable plant production method and show that these extracts can be a promissory source for replacing chemical fertilization. The study faces all the phases of plant growth, from the germination of the seeds to the greenhouse plant growth and treatment, matched with the chemical characterization of both the green algae used and the lettuce plants. This work is meant to define a tool to be improved by more experiments and studies in order to suggest a sustainable method that could ensure an adequate use of organic fertilizer. After the identification of the best concentration of the respective extracts of C. vulgaris and U. lactuca, the experiment affirmed that a low concentration (15% C. vulgaris and 25% U. lactuca) of the extracts contributed to the production of plants with a satisfying nutritional profile, while a high concentration (75% U. lactuca) is conducive to lettuce production with some parameters not suitable for human diet and health.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/app13169046","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,8]],"date-time":"2023-08-08T12:45:53Z","timestamp":1691498753000},"page":"9046","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":14,"title":["Use of Chlorella vulgaris and Ulva lactuca as Biostimulant on Lettuce"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Chiara","family":"Ammaturo","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, 80055 Portici, Italy"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5509-1067","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Diana","family":"Pacheco","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"MARE\u2014Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre\/ARNET\u2014Aquatic Research Network, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Cal\u00e7ada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456 Coimbra, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-5244-221X","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jo\u00e3o","family":"Cotas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"MARE\u2014Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre\/ARNET\u2014Aquatic Research Network, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Cal\u00e7ada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456 Coimbra, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-6208-4869","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Luigi","family":"Formisano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, 80055 Portici, Italy"}]},{"given":"Michele","family":"Ciriello","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, 80055 Portici, Italy"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6819-0619","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Leonel","family":"Pereira","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"MARE\u2014Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre\/ARNET\u2014Aquatic Research Network, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Cal\u00e7ada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456 Coimbra, Portugal"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-2208-2946","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Kiril","family":"Bahcevandziev","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Research Centre for Natural Resources, Environment and Society (CERNAS), Coimbra Agriculture School, Bencanta, 3045-601 Coimbra, Portugal"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,8,8]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2202","DOI":"10.3389\/fpls.2017.02202","article-title":"Biostimulant action of protein hydrolysates: Unraveling their effects on plant physiology and microbiome","volume":"8","author":"Colla","year":"2017","journal-title":"Front. 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