Fatty acid and lipid class composition of the eicosapentaenoic acid-producing microalga, Nitzschia laevis

The diatom Nitzschia laevis is a potential producer of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, C20:5n − 3). In order to further adopt this alga in the functional food and aquaculture industries, the lipid class composition and fatty acid distribution in the lipid pool of N. laevis were studied using thin-layer chromatography and gas chromatography. The total lipids of N. laevis were fractionated into neutral lipids (NLs), glycolipids (GLs) and phospholipids (PLs). NLs were the major constituents and accounted for 78.6% of the total lipids. Triacylglycerol (TAG) was the predominant component of NLs (87.9%). GLs and PLs accounted for 8.1% and 11.6% of the total lipids, respectively. Phosphatidylcholine (PC) was the major component of PLs (69.7%). The principal fatty acids identified in most lipid classes were tetradecanoic acid (C14:0), hexadecanoic acid (C16:0), palmitoleic acid (C16:1) and EPA. EPA was distributed widely among the various lipid classes with the major proportion (75.9% of the total EPA) existing in TAG, monoacylglycerol and PC.