Enhancement effect of ethyl-2-methyl acetoacetate on triacylglycerols production by a freshwater microalga, Scenedesmus sp. LX1

Microalgae are very promising in biodiesel production. To reduce the production cost, approaches to enhance lipid and triacylglycerols (TAGs) production by microalgae have gained much attention. Effect of ethyl-2-methyl acetoacetate (EMA) on the lipid and TAGs production by a freshwater microalga, Scenedesmus sp. LX1, was studied in this paper. EMA below a concentration of 2 mg L−1 had no significant effect on microalgal biomass or lipid production. The biomass and lipid productivity were about 0.47 g L−1 and 139 mg L−1, respectively, and the lipid content per biomass was about 30% (w/w). Promisingly, comparing with the one without EMA treatment, under EMA concentrations of 1.0–2.0 mg L−1 the TAGs content per lipid (about 20% (w/w)) and TAGs productivity (about 23 mg L−1) were increased by 79% and 40%, respectively. Therefore, exposing algal cells with trace amount of EMA offers a viable method to enhance the TAGs production in Scenedesmus sp. LX1.