Mining of squalene as a value-added byproduct from DHA producing marine thraustochytrid cultivated on food waste hydrolysate.

The commercial production of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) from oleaginous microorganisms is getting more attention due to several advantages over fish oils. The processing cost became a major bottleneck for commercialization of DHA from microorganisms. The most of cost shares in the feedstock to cultivate the microorganisms and downstream processing. The cost of feedstock can be compensated with the utilization of substrate from waste stream whereas production of value-added chemicals boosts the economic viability of nutraceutical production. In the present study, the docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)-producing marine protist Aurantiochytrium sp. T66 was cultivated on post-consumption food waste hydrolysate for the mining of squalene. After 120 h of cultivation, cell dry weight was 14.7 g/L, of which 6.34 g/L (43.13%; w/w) were lipids. DHA accounted for 2.15 g/L (34.05%) of total extracted lipids or 0.15 g/g. Maximum squalene concentration and yield were 1.05 g/L and 69.31 mg/g, respectively. Hence, utilization of food waste represents an excellent low-cost strategy for cultivating marine oleaginous thraustochytrids and produce squalene as a byproduct of DHA.