IMPROVEMENTS IN PROCEDURES FOR THE PRODUCTION OF EICOSAPENTAENOIC ACID BY MORTIERELLA

Modifications of growing conditions including time, light exposure, extraction methods, and use of shaker flask versus fermentor were used to increase the production of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5w3) by Mortierella elongata ATCC 16271. The highest productivity for EPA (66 mg/g dry mycelia) was obtained when M. elongata ATCC 16271 was grown at 12C, in yeast malt broth, pH 5.1, and harvested after 12 d. The Bioflo C-30 fermentor increased the EPA content 1.8 times and the fungal biomass 3.2 times when compared with the shaker flask. The extraction method of Sasser (1990) extracted higher amounts of EPA than the method of Shimizu et al. (1988b). Mortierella mycelial extract is of particular interest because it has fewer extraneous fatty acids than fish oil, which is presently an important source of EPA. The procedures developed in this study resulted in the production of a greater amount of EPA containing mycelia than previously reported, and suggest that commercialization of this process may be economically advantageous.