Growth and biochemical composition were analyzed in Gymnodinium sanguineum and Skeletonema costatum grown in media containing various nitrate and phosphate concentrations. Concentrations of nitrate and phosphate in the growth media were 0, 0.3, 0.6, 0.9, 1.2mM and 0, 15, 30, 45, 60 μM, respectively. Growth of G. sanguineum was suppressed in the low concentration of nitrate and phosphate(below N=0.3mM and P=15μM), whereas growth of S. costatum did not changed. At the low concentrations of nitrate and phosphate, amount of intracellular protein and carbohydrate in G. sanguineum cells were largely decreased, whereas content of carbohydrate in S. costatum cells was increased little. Amount of neutral lipid and phospholipid in G. sanguineum didn`t chagned, but concentration of glycolipid was largely decreased in the medium containing low concentrations of nitrate and phosphate. However the levels of TAG, glycolipid, and phospholipid did not changed in S. costatum cells. These results show that S. costatum is more adaptable than G. sanguineum in the low concentration of nitrate and phosphate.