Alpha-Linolenic Acid Production by the Mutant <i>Rhodosporidium toruloides</i>

Abstract

α-Linolenic Acid (ALA, C18:3) that is an essential Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid (PUFA) plays a vital role in many metabolic processes. The oleaginous yeast Rhodosporidium toruloides has generally been used for triacylglycerol production, including PUFAs. In this work, α-linolenic acid, not its γ-isomer, is firstly identified to be synthesized by R. toruloides and the mutant M18 that was obtained through plasma mutagenesis in the previous studies. The effects of five different nitrogen sources and four C/N ratios on the biomass, total lipid and ALA production from R. toruloides and M18 were studied. It was found that the highest biomass and lipid production were achieved when tryptone used as nitrogen with C/N ratio 100:1. In fed-batch cultivation, M18 has the highest ALA accumulation of 5.33% of total lipid, compared to 3.67% in the wild type strain. M18 has a promising potential in ALA production and commercial application of microbial PUFAs.

Carotenoids and lipid production from Rhodosporidium toruloides cultured in tea waste hydrolysate

“…The production of stearic acid and oleic acid from RM18 was improved by 35.45% and 21.89% in TWH, compared to the control, while the production of linoleic acid in RM18 was lower than in the control strain. Among all the components of lipids derived from both R. toruloides strains, α-linolenic acid was identified in previous work [28]. α-linolenic acid is a highly valuable essential ω-3 (cisΔ9, 12, 15) polyunsaturated fatty acid, and is required for normal human growth and development [29].…”