Enhancement of Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Production by Selenium Treatment in Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid-Producing Fungus

The effect of selenium (Se) treatment on the content of intracellular polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) was investigated. Selenium treatment could effectively increase the yields of arachidonic acid (AA) and linoleic acid (LA). When AA-producing Diasporangium jonesianum recombinant strain D-A1 was cultured in a medium containing 90 μg mL⁻¹ Se, the growth of D. jonesianum recombinant strain D-A1 was constrained, but the content of AA in the total fatty acids reached 9.3%, 1.7-fold higher than the control. The content of LA was also increased from 25.9 to 37.7%. Under various culture conditions, Se treatment (90 μg mL⁻¹) was generally beneficial to the yields of LA and AA. However, there was no significant increase in the contents of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and γ-linolenic acid. Therefore, the use of Se is advantageous for regulating the content of intracellular PUFA in D. jonesianum recombinant strain D-A1, and could be good enhancer in the yields of AA and LA.