GAMMA-LINOLENIC ACID PRODUCTION BY BIOCONVERSION OF THE LINOLEIC-ACID OF SOME OILS

Glucose, a cheap substrate and common constituent of the agricultural byproducts, can be biotransformed into lipids in a medium containing limited amounts of nitrogen (medium deficiency in nitrogen). Under optimum conditions of mold cultivation on this substrate, the higher yield in gamma-linolenic acid was obtained using the mold species Mucor circinelloides CBS 172-27 (GLA 15,4 % in oil, GLA produced = 209 mg/l of medium). The utilisation of oils rich in linoleic acid as a carbon source can substantially improve the yield in GLA. The linolenic acid present in the lipids of the culture medium is accumulated into the biomass of mold strains. The final concentration of linoleic acid in the reserve lipids of mold corresponds to 80 % of the lipid content of the medium. The ratio of bioconversion in GLA is GLA/18:2 + GLA = 26 %. Mucor circinelloides CBS 172-27 cultivated on a medium containing 10 g/l sunflower oil produced an oil containing 17,4 % GLA. The production of GLA reached the level of 470 mg/l of medium.