The Gelidiaceae is a small

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

red algae Red algae, or Rhodophyta (, ; ), are one of the oldest groups of eukaryotic algae. The Rhodophyta also comprises one of the largest phyla of algae, containing over 7,000 currently recognized species with taxonomic revisions ongoing. The majority ...

containing eight genera. Many species of this algae are used to make

agar Agar ( or ), or agar-agar, is a jelly-like substance consisting of polysaccharides obtained from the cell walls of some species of red algae, primarily from ogonori (''Gracilaria'') and "tengusa" (''Gelidiaceae''). As found in nature, agar is ...

Uses

Agar can be derived from many types of red seaweeds, including those from families such as ''Gelidiaceaae'', ''

Gracilariaceae The Gracilariaceae is a small family of red algae containing several genera of agarophytes. It has a world-wide distribution. 24 species are found in China, and 6 species are found in Great Britain and Ireland. It is found in Australia and Chile ...

'', '' Gelidiellaceae'' and '' Pterocladiaceae''. It is a

polysaccharide Polysaccharides (), or polycarbohydrates, are the most abundant carbohydrates found in food. They are long chain polymeric carbohydrates composed of monosaccharide units bound together by glycosidic linkages. This carbohydrate can react with wa ...

located in the inner part of the red algal cell wall. It is used in food material, medicines, cosmetics, therapeutic and biotechnology industries.Mohammed Kuddus and Roohi (editors)

References

Red algae families Edible algae Taxa named by Friedrich Traugott Kützing {{Rhodophyta-stub