Acylglycerols in Fungi

Over the past decades, fungi have been increasingly recognized as the potential source of lipids that can be applied in various sectors, including nutraceutical and biofuel. Thus, many studies have been conducted to understand the structural and functional roles of lipid molecules, particularly in the potential oleaginous strains. Lipids produced by oleaginous fungi comprise different classes, and acylglycerol, which are esters formed from different fatty acids and alcohols such as glycerol, represent the major components of the lipid. The biosynthesis of acylglycerol in fungi involved a series of reactions involving the central carbon and glycerol-3-phosphate (G-3-P), while its catabolism in vivo generally involved the degradation of triacylglycerol (TAG) by intracellular lipase resulting in the release of fatty acids and glycerol. The resulting glycerol will be phosphorylated, oxygenated, and enter glycolysis, whereas the fatty acids will undergo β-oxidation into acetyl-CoA and be used for various physiological functions. On the other hand, several fungi species, particularly from the Mucoralles sp, have been documented to be able to utilize the oil and fat as the alternative substrate for growth and reproduction due to its capability to produce extracellular lipases which hydrolyze the ester bond of the TAG. This chapter will comprehensively discuss the functional role of acylglycerol in fungi, its biosynthesis, as well as in vivo and ex vivo degradation in fungi, which will be a bridge toward the development of the industrial application.