Microbial lipid production

Microbial lipids, or “single cell oils” (SCOs), can be dened as microbial lipophilic compounds or oils obtained from microorganisms and are considered as alternative sources of edible oils because of their similarity in type and composition to vegetable or animal oils [1]. Lipids are mostly stored as triacylglycerols (TAGs) and small amounts of sterol esters in microorganisms [2]. As it is well known, microorganisms have many advantages over plants and animals such as higher growth rate, higher lipid content, less sensitivity to seasonal or climatic changes, and possibility of production in small areas. Oil yield and composition of the oil can be developed or modied by adjusting cultural conditions. Moreover, they can be improved by genetic modications much more easily than higher organisms. Therefore, microbial lipids have attracted considerable interest during the past decade as well as other microbial metabolites [2-4].