Identification of naturally isolated Southern Louisiana's algal strains and the effect of higher CO2 content on fatty acid profiles for biodiesel production

BACKGROUND: Microalgae, with both high biomass productivity and oil content, are regarded as attractive candidates for the production of alternative biodiesel as well as for CO₂ biofixation. In the present study, four microalgal strains native to southeastern Louisiana's waters were isolated and identified to evaluate their potential for the production of biodiesel. Selected strains were identified through genomic DNA in sequencing of either 16S rRNA or 18S rRNA genes followed by lipid and fatty acid content characterization and quantification. RESULTS: High correlation was found with known nucleotide sequence identities at 98% with Sellaphora pupula, and 99% with Synechococcus sp., Chlorella sorokiniana, Scenedesmus abundans, and Chlorella vulgaris (control). The fatty acid profiles of these organisms changed when using 5% CO₂ aeration. Total fatty acids (TFA) decreased from 20.63 to 17.62, 54.83 to 24.4, and 29.82 to 23.99 g kg^?1 in Synechococcus sp., Sellaphora pupula and Chlorella sorokiniana, respectively. TFA increased from 14.14 to 31.49 and 15.14 to 47.52 g kg^?1 dry biomass in Scenedesmus abundans and Chlorella vulgaris (control), respectively. CONCLUSION: Chlorella sorokiniana, with a lower C18:3 and the highest biomass yield at 5% CO₂ aeration, was found to be the best candidate for biodiesel production. © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry     

Growth kinetics and lipid production using Chlorella vulgaris in a circulating loop photobioreactor

BACKGROUND: Compared with agriculture, microalgae culture promises to be a novel way of producing lipids for both food consumption and transportation fuel (biodiesel) purposes while using a minimal amount of land area. A circulating loop photobioreactor has been used to study the growth kinetics and lipid yield of Chlorella vulgaris growing on carbon dioxide as the sole source of carbon. RESULTS: Because of high photosynthetic active radiation (PAR) fluxes, C. vulgaris was observed to grow in exponential mode. The highest growth rate achieved was 0.049 h^?1 at the optimum growth conditions of 71.8 mW L^?1 PAR density, 10% CO₂ (v/v) in air and with an applied 8 h dark phase. The microalgae was observed to grow in a Monod fashion with a PAR density saturation coefficient of 2.8 mW L^?1. Light intensity showed the potential to significantly increase lipid yield, which reached a maximum of 30% (by mass) of cell dry weight. CONCLUSION: The circulating loop photobioreactor is a low‐cost bioreactor technology capable of culturing photosynthetic microalgae at high PAR densities and with uniform mixing and lighting. C. vulgaris is able to grow exponentially in this bioreactor and produce lipids at concentrations up to 30% by cell dry weight. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Lipid components,fatty acid distributions of triacylglycerols and phospholipids in rice brans

Endogenous tocochromanols in extracted lipids from rice brans of the five cultivars were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography, and were investigated in relation to the fatty acid (FA) distribution of triacylglycerols (TAG) and phospholipids (PL). The dominant tocols were α-tocopherol and γ-tocotrienol, followed by α-tocotrienol and with much smaller amounts of γ-tocopherol and δ-tocotrienol. The lipids of these rice brans comprised mainly TAG (80.6–86.0 wt.%), free FA (4.2–9.0 wt.%), and phospholipids (5.5–6.7 wt.%), whilst other components were also detected in minor proportions (0.2–2.1 wt.%). The PL components included phosphatidyl choline (31.8–46.8 wt.%), phosphatidyl ethanolamine (25.0–38.9 wt.%) and phosphatidyl inositol (20.2–23.2 wt.%). Comparison of these different cultivars showed, with a few exceptions, no significant differences (P > 0.05) in FA distribution. FA distribution of TAG among the five cultivars was evident in the rice brans: unsaturated FA were predominantly concentrated at the sn-2 position and saturated FA primarily occupying the sn-1 or sn-3 position. These results suggest that the tocopherol content, lipid component, and FA distribution in rice brans are not dependent on the cultivation areas during the growing season.     

Lipase-catalyzed acidolysis of sunflower oil: Kinetic behavior

In the present study, sunflower oil was modified with a palmitic–stearic acids blend by means of an immobilized sn-1,3 specific lipase (Lipozyme RM IM) to produce structured lipids. Products were analyzed to determine fatty acid incorporation (F_M) into triacylglycerol structure and to quantify by-products as monoglycerides (MG) and diglycerides (DG). The effects of the reaction conditions (temperature, time, incorporated water) on enzymatic acidolysis were studied. Nonlinear regression methods were employed to fit experimental data with kinetic models proposed in the literature. The disappearance of reactant fatty acids (RF) over time was successfully modeled by a Ping-Pong Bi-Bi mechanism. F_M was also represented with a lumped parameter model of the enzymatic mechanism. Maximum RF disappearance and F_M onto sunflower oil glycerides increased with increasing reaction temperature. MG and DG concentrations in water-free systems were stabilized in low levels, while the incorporation of water to the reaction mixture produced a considerable increase in DG formation principally. Kinetic and equilibrium parameters showed temperature dependencies.     

Biodiesel production from Stichococcus strains at laboratory scale

BACKGROUND: This paper reports the results of an experimental campaign of autotrophic cultures of Stichococcus strains aiming at selecting the most promising strain for biofuel production. The strain selected—S. bacillaris 158/11—was cultivated in 1 L lab‐scale bubble column photobioreactors under fed‐batch and semi‐continuous conditions. A Bold basal medium supplemented with NaNO₃ as nitrogen source was adopted. Tests were carried out at 23 °C, 140 µE m^?2 s^?1, and air flow rate ranging between 0.4 and 4 vvm. Cultures were characterized in terms of pH, concentration of total nitrogen, total organic carbon, total inorganic carbon, biomass, lipid fraction and methyl‐ester distribution of transesterified lipids. RESULTS: S. bacillaris 158/11 proved to be the best strain to produce biodiesel. Methyl‐ester distribution was characterized by a large fraction of methyl palmitate, methyl linolenate, methyl linoleate, and methyl oleate along with phytol. The process photosynthetic efficiency—fraction of available light stored as chemical energy ‐ was about 1.5%. Specific biomass productivity was ～60 mg_DM L^?1 day^?1 under the semi‐continuous conditions tested. Total lipid productivity was 14 mg L^?1 day^?1 at a dilution rate of 0.050 L day^?1. CONCLUSION: S. bacillaris 158/11 is a potential strain for massive microalgae cultures for biofuel production. Higher biomass/total‐lipid productivity could be obtained in sunlight. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry     

Effect of beta-glucan from oats and yeast on serum lipids

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S. One way to reduce the risk of developing the disease is to lower serum cholesterol levels by making dietary changes. In addition to reducing intake of total fat, saturated fat, and dietary cholesterol, serum cholesterol can be further reduced by added fiber, especially from sources rich in beta-glucan. In this review, two sources of beta-glucan are described; one source is oats and the other yeast. Their chemical structures and physical properties are compared, and their effect on serum lipid levels is described. Oat beta-glucans are found in various breakfast cereals and snacks. Usually, several servings of these products are required to meet the Food and Drug Administration's claim of reducing the risk of heart disease. The yeast-derived fiber is a more concentrated source of beta-glucan than the oat product. It is currently being tested in a wide variety of food products.     

Evolution in the composition of human skin surface lipids during their accumulation on scalp and hair

Qualitative examination of human surface lipids collected using a surfactant solution shows that there are no significant differences between individuals when the samples are collected after one day, starting from clean hair and scalp. On the contrary, samples collected after 4 days reveal discrepancies within the population, related to the oily hair symptom.
An evolution in the composition of the recovered mixture occurs during the 1–4 days accumulation period, which mainly results in an increased unsaturation of the total (free + glycerides) fatty acids fraction isolated after saponification.
A two-step mechanism is proposed to account for the observed evolution: in a first step, free fatty acids are cleaved from glycerides by the well known enzymatic hydrolysis. Analytical determinations show that this process is structure dependant, the straight chain saturated acids being more readily hydrolyzable than the unsaturated and branched chain species. In a second step, free fatty acids are immobilized on the keratinic fibers, by a process which involves the formation of Ca salts.
This evolution results in a decreased viscosity of the skin surface lipids and in an increase of the low temperature melting fraction of the mixture. Its extent is more or less pronounced, depending upon the individuals. Subjects who exhibit extensive evolution are affected by the oily hair symptom.
Evolution de la composition des lipides superficiels humains durant leur accumulation sur le scalp et les cheveux     

n-Alkane content of intramuscular lipids of Iberian fresh ham from different feeding systems and crossbreeding

n-Alkane content of intramuscular lipids (Biceps femoris muscle) of the Iberian pig have been determined. Thirty-four pigs, divided into four groups, based in the feeding system (Montanera, fed on acorns and pasture; and Pienso, fed on a concentrate feed) and in the genotype (Iberian pure pigs; and Iberian crossbred with Duroc 50%) were studied. n-Alkane content of intramuscular lipids has not been affected by neither crossbreeding nor feeding, although the analysis of feeds administered to the pigs showed greater n-alkane values in pasture (consumed by animals in montanera), than in acorns and concentrate feed.     

对产油脂酵母的细胞破碎方法及油脂提取效果的比较

研究了冻融破碎法、超声波破碎法、酸热法以及冻融和酸热结合法破碎发酵性丝孢酵母(Trichosporon fermentans)细胞,并考察了乙醚-石油醚法和氯仿-甲醇法萃取细胞内油脂.实验结果表明,采用酸热法破碎细胞后以乙醚-石油醚作为萃取溶剂油脂提取效果较好,油脂得率高达29.8%.     

产DHA酒香酵母的培养条件优化研究

对海洋中筛选的酒香酵母(Brettanomyces sp.)7-3产DHA条件进行了优化,结果表明培养基最佳组成为葡萄糖10 g/L, 蔗糖10 g/L,酵母膏20 g/L,(NH4)2SO4 10 g/L,NaHCO3 1 g/L,K2HPO4 6 g/L,ZnSO4 0.1 g/L,MgSO4 0.1 g/L,CaCl2 0.5 g/L,Na2EDTA 0.2 g/L,FeC6H5O7·3H2O 0.01 g/L.摇瓶培养最佳条件为培养初始pH=6.0,培养温度25 ℃,装液量为100 mL(在500 mL摇瓶中),培养时间为84 h,优化后油脂与DHA产量分别提高了3.3和3.8倍.