Lipid formation by Arctic microalga Chlamydomonas sp. KNF0008 at low temperature

Abstract

In the present study, we introduce a new lipid-producing microalga, Chlamydomonas sp. KNF0008, collected from the Arctic. This strain was capable of growing at temperatures ranging from 4 oC to 20 oC, and the highest cell density was measured at 15 oC and 100 μmol photons m2 s1 light intensity under continuous shaking and external aeration. KNF0008 showed the elevated accumulation of lipid bodies under nitrogen-deficient conditions, rather than under nitrogen-sufficient conditions. Fatty acid production of KNF0008 was 4.2-fold (104 mg L1) higher than that of C. reinhardtii CC-125 at 15 oC in Bold’s Basal Medium. The dominant fatty acids were C16:0, C16:4, C18:1, and C18:3, and unsaturated fatty acids (65.69%) were higher than saturated fatty acids (13.65%) at 15oC. These results suggested that Arctic Chlamydomonas sp. KNF0008 could possibly be utilized for production of biodiesel during periods of cold weather because of its psychrophilic characteristics.