Algae. 1989; 4(1): 55-61.

Characters of Neutral Lipids of Detonula sp. in Culture

Mi-Kyong Kim, Georges Giraud

Department of Biology, Yeung-Nam University, Ecole Normale Superieure, Laboratoire des Biomembranes et Surfaces, Celllularies Begetales Paris

In spite of the importance of neutral lipids in de novo biochemical synthesis and physiological activity, it had been neglected to analyses their variations until now. We tried to clarify what kind of conditions Detonula sp. are favorable to accumulate neutral lipids and fatty acids. In this species, the amount of neutral lipid relative to total lipids decreased from the lag phase to the stationary phase during 13 days of culture. Conversely, it increased under nitrogen depleted medium. The dominant fatty acids are plamitic (C16:0), palmitoleic (C16:1) and eicosapentaenoic acids (C20:5). The eicosapentaenoic acids give good indicators on the growth conditions of organisms. According to our preceding results the mechanism of neutral lipids accumulation should have a photosynthetic origin rather than being derived either from the catabolism of polysaccharides and of proteins or from photorespiration.

Keywords : Detonula sp. growth condition, neutral lipids