Comparative Analysis of the Fatty Acid Profiles of Selected Representatives of Chlorella-Clade to Evaluate Their Biotechnological Potential

The objective of this study was to analyze the fatty acid composition of five strains from the genera Chlorella, Micractinium, and Meyerella and conduct an initial assessment of their biotechnological potential. It was found that the strain C. vulgaris VKM Al-335 is a good producer of palmitic acid, the Micractinium strains VKM Al-332 and VKM Al-343 are rich in ω-3 fatty acids, whereas the Meyerella strains VKM Al-346 and VKM Al-428 are producers of ω-6 fatty acids. A comparison of the biotechnological potential of algae with that of higher plant leaves (wheat) demonstrates that algal fatty acids exhibit greater diversity, although it is inferior to wheat leaves in terms of polyunsaturated and ω-3 fatty acids. Correlation analysis showed that when only straight-chain fatty acids were considered, the strains were distributed on the principal component analysis plot in accordance with their genetic relationships. However, when the entire fatty acid profile, inclusive of minor branched-chain and cyclic fatty acids, was analyzed, the algae distribution was in accordance with the environmental conditions in the original habitat, suggesting a possible connection between branched-chain and cyclic fatty acids and microalgae adaptability to environmental temperature conditions.