Stress-induced neutral lipid biosynthesis in microalgae — Molecular, cellular and physiological insights

Photosynthetic microalgae have promise as biofuel feedstock. Under certain conditions, they produce substantial amounts of neutral lipids, mainly in the form of triacylglycerols (TAGs), which can be converted to fuels. Much of our current knowledge on the genetic and molecular basis of algal neutral...

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Published in:Biochimica et biophysica acta 2016-09, Vol.1861 (9), p.1269-1281
Main Authors: Zienkiewicz, Krzysztof, Du, Zhi-Yan, Ma, Wei, Vollheyde, Katharina, Benning, Christoph
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biofuels
Diacylglycerol:acyltransferase (DGAT)
Fatty Acids - biosynthesis
Genome, Plant
Lipid
Lipid droplet (LD)
Lipid Metabolism - genetics
Lipids - biosynthesis
Lipids - genetics
Microalgae
Microalgae - genetics
Microalgae - metabolism
Phospholipid:diacylglycerol acyltransferase (PDAT)
Photosynthesis - genetics
Triacylglycerol (TAG)
Triglycerides - biosynthesis
Triglycerides - genetics
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Summary:Photosynthetic microalgae have promise as biofuel feedstock. Under certain conditions, they produce substantial amounts of neutral lipids, mainly in the form of triacylglycerols (TAGs), which can be converted to fuels. Much of our current knowledge on the genetic and molecular basis of algal neutral lipid metabolism derives mainly from studies of plants, i.e. seed tissues, and to a lesser extent from direct studies of algal lipid metabolism. Thus, the knowledge of TAG synthesis and the cellular trafficking of TAG precursors in algal cells is to a large extent based on genome predictions, and most aspects of TAG metabolism have yet to be experimentally verified. The biofuel prospects of microalgae have raised the interest in mechanistic studies of algal TAG biosynthesis in recent years and resulted in an increasing number of publications on lipid metabolism in microalgae. In this review we summarize the current findings on genetic, molecular and physiological studies of TAG accumulation in microalgae. Special emphasis is on the functional analysis of key genes involved in TAG synthesis, molecular mechanisms of regulation of TAG biosynthesis, as well as on possible mechanisms of lipid droplet formation in microalgal cells. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: Plant Lipid Biology edited by Kent D. Chapman and Ivo Feussner. •Lipid metabolism in microalgae and plants is distinct.•There is a proliferation of microalgal genes involved in triacylglycerol biosynthesis.•Algal lipid droplets differ from plant seed lipid droplets.•Neutral lipid biosynthesis is primarily stress-induced in microalgae.
ISSN:1388-1981
0006-3002
1879-2618
1878-2434
DOI:10.1016/j.bbalip.2016.02.008