MICROORGANISM SECRETING OUT LIPID AND PROCESS FOR PRODUCING THE LIPID AND LIPID BALLS HAVING THE LIPID ENCAPSULATING THEREIN BY USING THE MICROORGANISM

摘要

A microorganism characterized by producing a lipid constituted by unsaturated fatty acids and secreting outside the cells the thus produced lipid in the form of lipid balls having the lipid encapsulated therein; a method for screening this microorganism; a process for efficiently producing the lipid containing the unsaturated fatty acids by using this microorganism; lipid balls having the lipid containing the unsaturated fatty acids encapsulated therein; and foods, cosmetics and animal feeds containing these lipid balls. Artificially treated microorganisms or microorganisms collected from nature are grown in a solid medium and a strain forming lipid balls around its colonies is selected, and/or grown in a transparent liquid medium and a strain causing cloudiness in the culture medium is selected. The thus obtained microorganism is cultured and the lipid balls having the secreted lipid are separated from the culture medium followed by the separation and purification of the lipid.