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Fermentation process for producing CFAs using Yarrowia lipolytica

  • Metabolic Engineering and Synthetic Biology - Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Industrial Microbiology & Biotechnology

Abstract

Past research has sought to improve the production of cyclopropane fatty acids by the oleaginous yeast Yarrowia lipolytica by heterologously expressing the E. coli fatty acid synthase gene and improving cultivation processes. Cyclopropane fatty acids display properties that hold promise for biofuel applications. The E. coli fatty acid synthase gene was introduced into several genetic backgrounds of the yeast Y. lipolytica to optimize lipid synthesis; the mean cyclopropane fatty acid productivity was 43 mg L−1 h−1 on glucose, and the production rate reached its maximum (3.06 g L−1) after 72 h of cultivation in a bioreactor. The best strain (JMY6851) overexpressed simultaneously the E. coli cyclopropane fatty acid synthase gene under a hybrid promoter (hp8d) and Y. lipolytica LRO1 gene. In fed-batch process using crude glycerol as carbon source, JMY6851 strain displayed high lipid accumulation (78% of dry cell weight) and high biomass production (56 g L−1). After 165 h of cultivation, cyclopropane fatty acids represented 22% of the lipids produced; cyclopropane fatty acid productivity (103.3 mg L−1 h−1) was maximal at 72.5 h of cultivation.

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Acknowledgements

This work was performed in collaboration with SAS PIVERT (www.institut-pivert.com), which is an institute for energy transition (Institut pour la Transition Energétique [ITE] PIVERT)). SAS PIVERT received funding from the French government’s Investments for the Future programme (Investissements d’Avenir). This study was also supported by Investments for the Future funding (ANR-001).

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  1. Nabila Imatoukene

    Present address: Centre Européen de Biotechnologie Et de Bioéconomie, Agro-Biotechnologies Industrielles, Rue des Rouges Terres, 51110, Pomacle, France

  2. Nabila Imatoukene and Alexandre Back contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Micalis Institute, INRA, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, 78350, Jouy-En-Josas, France

    Nabila Imatoukene, Alexandre Back, Tristan Rossignol & Jean-Marc Nicaud

  2. Sorbonne Universités, UMR-CNRS 7025, Université de Technologie de Compiègne (UTC), CS 60319, 60203, Compiègne Cedex, France

    Nabila Imatoukene & Brigitte Thomasset

  3. Sorbonne Universités, EA 4297 TIMR, Université de Technologie de Compiègne (UTC), CS 60319, 60203, Compiègne Cedex, France

    Nabila Imatoukene & Maurice Nonus

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Imatoukene, N., Back, A., Nonus, M. et al. Fermentation process for producing CFAs using Yarrowia lipolytica. J Ind Microbiol Biotechnol 47, 403–412 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10295-020-02276-6

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