Identification and Characterization of Oleaginous Yeast Isolated from Kefir and Its Ability to Accumulate Intracellular Fats in Deproteinated Potato Wastewater with Different Carbon Sources

The search for efficient oleaginous microorganisms, which can be an alternative to fossil fuels and biofuels obtained from oilseed crops, has been going on for many years. The suitability of microorganisms in this regard is determined by their ability to biosynthesize lipids with preferred fatty acid profile along with the concurrent utilization of energy-rich industrial waste. In this study, we isolated, characterized, and identified kefir yeast strains using molecular biology techniques. The yeast isolates identified were Candida inconspicua, Debaryomyces hansenii, Kluyveromyces marxianus, Kazachstania unispora, and Zygotorulaspora florentina. We showed that deproteinated potato wastewater, a starch processing industry waste, supplemented with various carbon sources, including lactose and glycerol, is a suitable medium for the growth of yeast, which allows an accumulation of over 20% of lipid substances in its cells. Fatty acid composition primarily depended on the yeast strain and the carbon source used, and, based on our results, most of the strains met the criteria required for the production of biodiesel. In particular, this concerns a significant share of saturated fatty acids, such as C16:0 and C18:0, and unsaturated fatty acids, such as C18:1 and C18:2. The highest efficiency in lipid biosynthesis exceeded 6.3 g L−1. Kazachstania unispora was able to accumulate the high amount of palmitoleic acid.

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