Developing the Alga Euglena Gracilis as a Source of Vegan Omega Oils and Other High Value Compounds

该项目将与一家工业合作伙伴合作，在藻类培养和菌株改良、化学分析和代谢组学方面进行深入培训。导师：Ellis O'Neill（诺丁汉大学）和John Macdonald和Donal McGee (algaecyte Limited) Omega油或多不饱和脂肪酸（PUFAs）被认为是人类健康所必需的；然而，人体不能自然产生它们，必须从其他食物来源获取，如野生深海鱼类或其他海洋动物，2019年全球市场规模近20亿美元。藻油中的Omega - 3油在营养上与鱼油相当，可以取代海洋动物的油。该项目将开发利用绿藻生产这些油，并研究高价值的副产品，以提高这些生产系统的经济可行性。该项目是一个新的合作项目，结合了O’neill实验室在藻类代谢方面的专业知识和algaecyte的转化专业知识，将藻类代谢的基础知识应用于商业化生产试验，并评估了以海藻为基础的素食欧米茄油的经济可行性。该项目结合了奥尼尔实验室在绿藻生长和代谢方面的经验和知识，以及algaecyte在淡水藻类工业生产和开发方面的专业知识。该研究项目将包括优化粗叶茅的生长，以生产Omega油，并分析其副产品，随后使用诱变和细胞分选进行菌株改良。随后将在肯特郡algaecyte的基地进行工业安置，利用现场技术优化生长条件并监测产品产量。

This project will work with an industrial collaborator to gain in depth training in algal culturing and strain improvement, chemical analysis and metabolomics. Supervisors: Ellis O'Neill (University of Nottingham) and John Macdonald and Donal McGee (AlgaeCytes Limited) Omega oils or Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids (PUFAs) are deemed essential for human health; however, the human body does not naturally produce them but must get them from other food sources such as wild-catch deep sea fish or other marine animals, with a global market of almost $2 billion in 2019. Omega 3 oils in algal oil are nutritionally equivalent to fish oil and can replace oils derived from marine animals. This project will develop the use of the alga Euglena gracilis for production of these oils and investigate high value co-products to improve the economic viability of these production systems. This project is a new collaboration, combining the expertise in the O'Neill lab in algal metabolism and the translational expertise in AlgaeCytes to take the fundamental knowledge of algal metabolism to trial commercial production and evaluate the economic viability of a Euglena based vegan Omega oil. This project brings together the experience and knowledge of the O'Neill lab in growth and metabolism in Euglena and AlgaeCytes' expertise in industrial production and exploitation of freshwater algae.This research program will involve optimising the growth of Euglena gracilis for production of the Omega oils and analysing the co-products, followed by strain improvement, using mutagenesis and cell sorting. This will be followed by an industrial placement at AlgaeCytes' base in Kent, optimising the growth conditions with the onsite technology and monitoring the product yields.