Composition of lipids produced by some strains of Candida species. Production of single-cell oil in a chemostat culture

Fatty acid composition of the lipids produced by four strains of Candida species was studied. Oleic acid was the principal fatty acid. Cellular lipids of Candida sp. and C. pulcherima were rich in palmitic acid. Lipids from C. lipolytica contained a significant amount of palmitoleic acid, whereas C. farinosa produced oil rich in stearis and alpha-linolenic acid. Analysis of cellular lipids of Candida sp. and C. pulcherima during growth on a nitrogen-limited medium showed that oils accumulated in the exponential growth phase were more unsaturated than those accumulated in the decelerating and stationary phases. In a chemostat culture, Candida sp. accumulated about 40 % of lipid. The specific rate of lipid formation, at a dilution rate of D = 0.09/h, was 35 mg of lipid per g of biomass per h and the yield of lipid on glucose was 11.4 %.