Microalgae are a promising feedstock for biodiesel and other
liquid fuels due to their fast growth rate, high lipid yields, and
ability to grow in a broad range of environments. However,
many microalgae achieve maximal lipid yields only under stress
conditions hindering growth and providing compositions not
ideal for biofuel applications. Metabolic engineering of algal
fatty acid biosynthesis promises to create strains capable of
economically producing fungible and sustainable biofuels. The
algal fatty acid biosynthetic pathway has been deduced by
homology to bacterial and plant systems, and much of our
understanding is gleaned from basic studies in these systems.
However, successful engineering of lipid metabolism in algae
will necessitate a thorough characterization of the algal fatty
acid synthase (FAS) including protein–protein interactions and
regulation. This review describes recent efforts to engineer fatty
acid biosynthesis toward optimizing microalgae as a biodiesel
feedstock.