Biological removal of inhibitors leads to the improved lipid production in the lipid fermentation of corn stover hydrolysate by Trichosporon cutaneum

► In this study, two key technical barrier for lipid fermentation using lignocellulse as the feedstock were proposed: the inhibitor existence and the low C/N ratio. ► The newly established biodetoxification method was applied to the lipid fermentaiton of Trichosporon cutaneum CX1, and resulted in the inhibitor removal and the increase of C/N ratio. ► The cell lipid content of T. cutaneum CX1 using the biodetoxified CS hydrolysate reached 23.5%, more than doubled than the non-detoxified value.