Tailoring the potential of Yarrowia lipolytica for bioconversion of raw palm fat for antimicrobials production

- The ability of some Y. lipolytica strains to metabolise palm fat was analysed.
- The conditions for enzymatic conversion simulated food matrix environment.
- Free fatty acids profiling represented by palmitic, lauric and myristic acids.
- The fatty acids released are known for their antimicrobial properties.

The need for natural antimicrobials with reference to food preservation and food safety highlights the importance of vegetable fats that can be an essential source of fatty acids with antimicrobial properties. The hydrolysis of raw palm fat was evaluated using the in vitro solid state cultivation of eight strains of Yarrowia lipolytica. Therefore, the solid state enzymatic conversion of raw fat at different water activity values and time periods (up to 7 days) was performed. The best results were obtained with Y. lipolytica MIUG D14 at 25 °C, aw 0.98, after 7 days of solid state cultivation. The free fatty acids profile was analyzed by GC-MS and the results revealed a higher concentration of some acids, recognized for their antimicrobial effects, i.e 50% palmitic acid (C16:0), 20% linoleic acid (C18:2) and over 6% for the lauric (C12:0) and myristic (C14:0) acids. The results revealed that under controlled conditions, the solid state enzymatic conversion of raw palm is an effective method for free fatty acids with antimicrobial activity production, at reduced costs. This process can be successfully used for obtaining a biopreservation effect in various applications in food industry and related fields, such as cosmetics.