Effect of Argan Oil on Lipid Production by Yarrowia lipolytica NRRL YB-423

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of different concentrations of traditional, industrial, and cosmetic argan oils on lipid production by Yarrowia lipolytica NRRL YB-423 in a glucose-based medium. This study also explored the influence of different nitrogen concentrations on lipid and biomass production. Traditional argan oil had the highest oleic acid amount, whereas industrial and cosmetic argan oils had a higher linoleic acid amount. A lipid accumulation of 4.18 g/l was achieved with industrial argan oil, equivalent to approximately 65% lipid yield based on the dry cell weight. In addition, the results indicated that higher concentrations of argan oil led to increased lipid production. Correlation analysis showed that the addition of argan oil caused a change in fatty acid composition and an increase in linoleic acid amount. Linoleic acid increased in the presence of cosmetic argan oil (0.5 ml). The same effect was observed in the presence of 2 ml of traditional or industrial argan oil. In addition, when the amount of additional nitrogen was increased to 1 g/l, oleic acid amount increased in the control group. The nitrogen concentration used along with the argan oil type also caused changes in the correlations. The industrial argan oil group differed from the other groups in the presence of 1 g/l N. On the contrary, in the presence of an additional 0.5 g/l N, the industrial and traditional argan oil groups were closely correlated with each other.