Characterization of Aspergillus species based on fatty acid profiles

Abstract

Cellular fatty acid composition was investigated as a taxonomic tool to discriminate Aspergillus species. Several of the tested species had the same fatty acid composition and different fatty acid relative concentration. The most important fatty acids were palmitic acid (C16:0), estearic acid (C18:0), oleic acid (C18:1), and linoleic acid (C18:2), representing 95% of Aspergillus fatty acids. Multivariate data analysis demonstrated to be useful for differentiating species belonging to Aspergillus genus. All the species analyzed showed significantly different fatty acid profiles (p<0.001). Furthermore, it will be possible to distinguish among Aspergillus spp. in the Flavi Section. Fatty acid composition has a considerable usefulness as a tool for the identification of filamentous fungi.