title: Temperature modulation of fatty acid profiles for biofuel production in nitrogen deprived Chlamydomonas reinhardtii.
abstract: This study investigated the changes in the fatty acid content and composition in the nitrogen-starved Chlamydomonas reinhardtii starchless mutant, BAF-J5, grown at different temperatures. The optimal temperature for vegetative growth under nitrogen sufficient conditions was found to be 32 °C. Shifting temperature from 25 to 32 °C, in conjunction with nitrogen starvation, resulted in BAF-J5 storing the maximum quantity of fatty acid (76% of dry cell weight). Shifting to temperatures lower than 25 °C, reduced the total amount of stored fatty acid content and increased the level of desaturation in the fatty acids. The optimal fatty acid composition for biodiesel was at 32 °C. This study demonstrates how a critical environmental factor, such as temperature, can modulate the amount and composition of fatty acids under nitrogen deprivation and reduce the requirement for costly refining of biofuels.
authors.affiliation: Plant Science Division, Research School of Biology, College of Medicine, Biology and Environment, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT 0200, Australia.
authors.forename: Gabriel O
authors.initials: GO
authors.lastname: James
authors.forename: Charles H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Hocart
authors.forename: Warwick
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hillier
authors.forename: G Dean
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Price
authors.forename: Michael A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Djordjevic
mesh_terms: D056804:Biofuels / Q000032:analysis*; D016825:Chlamydomonas reinhardtii / Q000378:metabolism*; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000378:metabolism*; D008401:Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry; D009584:Nitrogen / Q000172:deficiency*; D017550:Spectroscopy, Fourier Transform Infrared; D013696:Temperature
chemical_list: D056804:Biofuels; D005227:Fatty Acids; D009584:Nitrogen