The present study aimed to throw light on the effect of nitrogen deficiency, salt stress and iron
concentration on growth, lipid content and fatty acid profile of
Chlorella vulgaris
. The present results showed
that lipid content of
C. vulgaris
is inversely related to the growth rate at different treatments. Nitrogen
deficiency of
C. vulgaris
of 0.1 mM of NaNO and 0.45 mM of NaCl resulted in the highest lipid content
3
(54.88 % and 43.2 % of CDW, respectively) after 12 days of incubation, which represents 85 % and 45 % higher
than their corresponding control, respectively. Treatment with ferrous sulphate showed the highest lipid
content (34.7 of CDW, 17 % higher than the control) at 35 μM after 12 days of incubation. Total saturated fatty
acids percentages represented 50-59 % of total fatty acids, while unsaturated fatty acids represented 41-50 %
of total fatty acids. The predominant saturated and unsaturated fatty acids of
C. vulgaris
were C16:0 and C18:
2, respectively. Also, it was found that all of the treatments resulted in formation of lignoceric acid (C24:0)
which wasn't recorded in the lipid profile of untreated alga.