Production of C20 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) by pathway engineering: identification of a PUFA elongase component from Caenorhabditis elegans

2000 ◽  
Vol 28 (6) ◽  
pp. 661-663 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Beaudoin ◽  
L. V. Michaelson ◽  
M. J. Lewis ◽  
P. R. Shewry ◽  
O. Sayanova ◽  
...  

Using a combination of database-mining and functional characterization, we have identified a component of the polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) elongase. Co-expression of this elongating activitiy with fatty acid desaturases has allowed us to heterologously reconstitute the PUFA biosynthetic pathway. Both these enzymes (desaturases and elongase components) have undergone gene-duplication events which provide a paradigm for the diverged nature of PUFA biosynthetic activities.

Microbiology ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 150 (6) ◽  
pp. 1983-1990 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takahiro Oura ◽  
Susumu Kajiwara

Fungi, like plants, are capable of producing the 18-carbon polyunsaturated fatty acids linoleic acid and α-linolenic acid. These fatty acids are synthesized by catalytic reactions of Δ12 and ω3 fatty acid desaturases. This paper describes the first cloning and functional characterization of a yeast ω3 fatty acid desaturase gene. The deduced protein encoded by the Saccharomyces kluyveri FAD3 gene (Sk-FAD3) consists of 419 amino acids, and shows 30–60 % identity with Δ12 fatty acid desaturases of several eukaryotic organisms and 29–31 % identity with ω3 fatty acid desaturases of animals and plants. During Sk-FAD3 expression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, α-linolenic acid accumulated only when linoleic acid was added to the culture medium. The disruption of Sk-FAD3 led to the disappearance of α-linolenic acid in S. kluyveri. These findings suggest that Sk-FAD3 is the only ω3 fatty acid desaturase gene in this yeast. Furthermore, transcriptional expression of Sk-FAD3 appears to be regulated by low-temperature stress in a manner different from the other fatty acid desaturase genes in S. kluyveri.


RSC Advances ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (12) ◽  
pp. 6871-6880 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chunchi Rong ◽  
Haiqin Chen ◽  
Xin Tang ◽  
Zhennan Gu ◽  
Jianxin Zhao ◽  
...  

Fatty acid desaturases are key enzymes in the biosynthesis of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) via conversion of n-6 polyunsaturates to their n-3 counterparts.


2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (12) ◽  
pp. 3058 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pushkar Shrestha ◽  
Xue-Rong Zhou ◽  
Sapna Vibhakaran Pillai ◽  
James Petrie ◽  
Robert de Feyter ◽  
...  

Omega-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (ω3 LC-PUFAs) such as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA; 20:5ω3) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA; 22:6ω3) are important fatty acids for human health. These ω3 LC-PUFAs are produced from their ω3 precursors by a set of desaturases and elongases involved in the biosynthesis pathway and are also converted from ω6 LC-PUFA by omega-3 desaturases (ω3Ds). Here, we have investigated eight ω3-desaturases obtained from a cyanobacterium, plants, fungi and a lower animal species for their activities and compared their specificities for various C18, C20 and C22 ω6 PUFA substrates by transiently expressing them in Nicotiana benthamiana leaves. Our results showed hitherto unreported activity of many of the ω3Ds on ω6 LC-PUFA substrates leading to their conversion to ω3 LC-PUFAs. This discovery could be important in the engineering of EPA and DHA in heterologous hosts.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hung Van Le ◽  
Don Viet Nguyen ◽  
Quang Vu Nguyen ◽  
Bunmi Sherifat Malau-Aduli ◽  
Peter David Nichols ◽  
...  

2000 ◽  
Vol 70 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-61 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. O. W. McClintont ◽  
A. F. Carson

AbstractThis study investigated the efficiency of growth and the carcass characteristics of 24 Greyface (Border Leicester × Scottish Blackface), 24 Texel (12 purebred and 12 Texel × Texel-Greyface) and 24 Rouge (12 purebred and 12 Rouge × Rouge-Greyface) lambs finished on the same level of feeding. The efficiency of live-weight gain (kg/MJ) was higher in Greyface compared with Texel lambs (P< 0·01). The efficiency of empty body-weight gain (kg/MJ) was higher in Greyface (P< 0·01) and Rouge (P< 0·05) compared with Texel lambs. The efficiency of carcass gains (kg/MJ) tended to be higher in Greyface and Rouge compared with Texel lambs (P= 0·07). The efficiency of non-carcass component gains (kg/MJ) was also higher in Greyface compared with Texel lambs (P0·05). Carcass water, protein, lipid and ash gains did not vary significantly between the genotypes, however carcass energy gain tended to be higher in Greyface and Rouge compared with Texel lambs (P= 0·08). The relative proportions of water, protein, lipid and ash in carcass gains did not vary significantly between the genotypes. At the end of the experiment carcass water content was higher in Texel compared with Greyface lambs (P< 0·05) and carcass ash content was lower in Texel compared with Greyface (P< 0·01) and Rouge (P< 0·05) lambs. The concentration of saturated fatty acids was higher in Greyface compared with Rouge lambs (P< 0·001) and higher in Rouge compared with Texel lambs (P< 0·05). Monounsaturated fatty acid concentrations were higher in Rouge compared with Greyface lambs (P< 0·05) and higher in Texel compared with Rouge lambs (P< 0·001). Polyunsaturated fatty acid concentrations were higher in Rouge and Texel compared with Greyface lambs (P< 0·01). The ratio of n-6:n-3 fatty acids was lower in Rouge compared with Greyface lambs (P< 0·05).The efficiency of empty body gain was higher in male compared with female lambs (P< 0·05). Carcass water (P< 0·01) and protein (P< 0·05) gains were higher in male lambs. At the end of the experiment male carcasses contained a higher content of water (P< 0·05), protein (P< 0·01) and ash (P= 0·07), and a lower lipid (P< 0·05) and energy (P< 0·001) content. Carcass lipids from male lambs contained a higher concentration of polyunsaturated fatty acids (P< 0·001) and tended to contain a lower concentration of saturated fatty acids (P = 0·06).


2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yutaka Tashiro

Purpose This study aimed to analyze the lipid content and fatty acid composition in the liver and muscle of a porcupinefish species inhabiting waters around the Ryukyu Islands to investigate their potential as a source of long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs). Design/methodology/approach Porcupinefish were collected along the Okinawa Island coast. The composition of fatty acids and cholesterol in both liver and muscle were analyzed using a gas chromatograph mass spectrometer. Findings The liver of Okinawan long-spine porcupinefish was rich in lipids whose content correlated to the proportion of liver/body weight. Fatty acid compositions in their liver and muscles were similar to each other. LC-PUFAs occupied 44% of total fatty acids, with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) being the dominant (42%), whereas eicosapentaenoic acid occupied 2.4%. The liver contained 1,690 mg of cholesterol and 14.8 g of DHA per 100 g, whose proportion decreased in summer compared to other seasons (p = 0.036). Originality/value The liver of Okinawan long-spine porcupinefish, which has not yet been commercially used although its non-toxicity is claimed, can be an excellent source of LC-PUFAs, especially DHA, accentuating its potential in food supplements’ production.


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