To combine the advantage of the oleaginous yeast Yarrowia lipolytica with the high activity of some fungal
lipases for oily wastewater treatment, an effective lipase-displaying arming yeast was constructed using
the flocculation functional domain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae as the protein anchor. To estimate the
effect of the whole-cell oily wastewater treatment, the lipase-displaying arming yeast was added into an
open activated sludge bioreactor. Within 72 h of whole-cell treatment, 96.9% of oil and 97.6% of chemical
oxygen demand (COD) were removed, while only 87.1% of oil and 91.8% of COD were removed in control A
(Y. lipolytica Polg was added), 45.1% of oil and 67.5% of COD were removed in control B (no cell was added)
in 72 h. The lipase-displaying arming yeast exhibited remarkable oil removal and COD degradation effect
compared with the control samples, exemplifying its application potential.