Fatty acid selectivity of lipases: Erucic acid from rapeseed oil

Abstract
The fatty acid selectivity of several commercial lipases was evaluated in the hydrolysis of high‐erucic acid rapeseed oil (HEARO). The lipase ofPseudomonas cepacia catalyzed virtually complete hydrolysis of the oil (94–97%), while that ofGeotrichum candidum discriminated strongly against erucic acid, especially in esterification. A two‐step process is suggested for obtaining a highly enriched erucic acid in which theG. candidum lipase is employed to selectively esterify the fatty acid residues of unsaturated C‐18, and shorter chain acids, from a mixture of HEARO fatty acids obtained from total hydrolysis of the oil withP. cepacia lipase.