Algal Lipids and Their Metabolism

Abstract

Algae exhibit superior attributes to terrestrial crop plants as bioenergy sources. Many algae accumulate substantial amounts of non-polar lipids, mostly in the form of triacylglycerols or hydrocarbons, and these levels may reach up to 20–50 % of dry cell weight. These oleaginous species have been considered as promising sources of oil for biofuels, such as surrogates of gasoline, kerosene and diesel. In spite of several technical limitations associated with existing technologies in the production of economically-viable algal oil, further research in this area is needed and such studies will clearly benefit from a better understanding of lipid metabolism and accumulation in algal cells. At present, relatively little information is available on lipid biosynthesis and its regulation in algae. Moreover, the lack of information about control mechanisms for the lipid synthesis in different algal species limits our attempts to manipulate lipid metabolism in algae. However, some promising achievements in genetic and metabolic manipulations in higher plants are useful examples/directions to follow. In the present chapter we give an overview of lipid composition and lipid metabolism in algae with a special emphasis on the production of algal oils and/or their metabolism for biofuel applications.