Les microalgues marines: Source alternative d'acide eicosapentaè noïque (EPA) et d'acide docosahexaènoïque (DHA)

Abstract

Lipids from marine microalgae contain high amounts of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, C20:5) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, C22:6), two nutritionally importantes highly unsaturated fatty acids (HUFA-ω3), and are nowadays considered as a potential alternative source to fish oils. Microalgae display variable relative amounts of EPA and DHA depending on the taxonomic class they belong to. Moreover, a given strain may produce highly variable amounts of these fatty acids in response to modifications of culture conditions. Because microalgae are photoautotrophic microorganisms, specific bioreactors, namely photobioreactors, were developed to ensure large biomass production. Numerous research works are still to be carried out in order to confirm economic feasibility of industrial production of EPA and DHA from microalgae.