Algal transformations of three cyclic beta-keto esters, methyl 2-oxocyclopentanecarboxylate (MCPC), ethyl 2-oxocyclohexanecarboxylate (ECHxC), and methyl 2-oxocycloheptanecarboxylate (MCHpC) were photoautotrophically studied with an axenic strain of Chlorella pyrenoidosa Chick. The three cyclic beta-keto esters were transformed in two manners; reduction of the carbonyl group to a hydroxy group and elimination of the alkoxycarbonyl group. The former reaction occurred more often than the latter. The cis/trans ratios of the resulting alcohols in MCPC, ECHxC and MCHpC were 13 : 87, 15 : 85, and 65 : 35, respectively. The alkoxycarbonyl group elimination products were as follows : cyclopentanone and cyclopentanol in MCPC, cyclohexanone and cyclohexanol in ECHxC, and cycloheptanone in MCHpC.