3.3 FAME analysis
FAME profile showed ~ 2-fold increase in glycerol
supplemented cultures (M1, M2, M3, M4), where ~97 mg
L-1 of lipid was obtained in the M4 condition, which
is ~ 40 % higher as compared to P1 and 8 % as compared
to M3 cultures (Table 2) . Glycerol in the form of reduced
carbon source affects lipid metabolism by mimicking most of the effects
of nitrogen limitation[52,
55], hence the storage molecules i.e.
triacylglycerol (TAGs) are accumulated in M3 culture. Moreover,
significant variations were observed in FAME profile (% total fatty
acid) in different culture conditions (Table 2) . Saturated and
monounsaturated fatty acid percentage were higher in P1, P3, M1, M2 and
M3 supplemented cultures, whereas P2 and M4 cultures showed a higher
polyunsaturated fatty acid percentage. EPA being the major long chain
fatty acid in P. tricornutum was highest among all other fatty
acid species in all the conditions but ~2-fold increase
of EPA % of total fatty acid (TFA) was observed in M4, accounting for
28% of TFA (Table 2). These results imply that feeding with
cost effective nitrogen source can be used as an effective strategy to
enhance the omega-3 production in P. tricornutum.