Abstract
Study on microbial lipid production was started at the beginning of the 20th century. In 1985 the first industrial production of microbial lipid containing γ-linolenic acid was carried out. Microbial lipids containing arachidonic acid and docosahexaenoic acid were subsequently produced. These lipids are polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), or essential fatty acids for human. PUFA is the most important object in the research of single cell oil, a substitutive term of microbial lipid. As PUFA composition in microorganisms depends on their genera to some extent, PUFA can be chemotaxonomically used as an index matter of their classification. In the present review on lipid and PUFA production, especially γ-linolenic acid, arachidonic acid and docosahexaenoic acid by yeasts, fungi and labyrinthulae are discussed, with attention to the differences in batch and continuous cultures. How microbial lipids come to be produced on an industrial scale is explained.
