PRODUCTION OF AN EICOSAPENTAENOIC ACID-CONTAINING OIL BY A DELTA-12 DESATURASE-DEFECTIVE MUTANT OF MORTIERELLA-ALPINA 1S-4

A DELTA12 desaturase-defective mutant of an arachidonic acid (AA)-producing fungus, Mortierella alpina 1S-4, converted alpha-linolenic acid (18:3omega3) to 5(Z),8(Z),11(Z),14(Z),17(Z)-eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA). On submerged cultivation at 20-degrees-C for 10 d in a 5-L fermentor containing medium comprising 1% glucose, 1% yeast extract and 3% (vol/vol) linseed oil, EPA production amounted to ca. 1 g/L culture broth (64 mg/g dry mycelium), which accounted for ca. 20% of the total mycelial fatty acids. AA content was 26 mg/g dry mycelium (0.4 g/L), accounting for 7.8% of the total mycelial fatty acids. The other major mycelial fatty acids were palmitic acid (4.5%), oleic acid (20.4%), linoleic acid (10.0%), 18:3omega3 (20.3%) and lignoceric acid (4.3%). Most of the EPA produced (ca. 90 mol%) was in triglyceride form.