Engineering oilseed plants for a sustainable, land-based source of long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids.
Numerous clinical studies have demonstrated the cardiovascular and mental health benefits of including very long chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, namely eicospentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosohexaenoic acid (DHA) in the human diet. Certain fish oils can be a rich source of omega-3 long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids although processed marine oils are generally undesirable as food ingredients because of the associated objectionable flavors and contaminants that are difficult and cost-prohibitive to remove. Oilseed plants rich in omega-3 fatty acids, such as flax and walnut oils, contain only the 18-carbon omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid alpha-linolenic acid, which is poorly converted by the human body to EPA and DHA. It is now possible to engineer common omega-6 rich oilseeds such as soybean and canola to produce EPA and DHA and this has been the focus of a number of academic and industrial research groups. Recent advances and future prospects in the production of EPA and DHA in oilseed crops are discussed here.
Damude
Howard G
HG
Crop Genetics Research, DuPont Experimental Station, Wilmington, DE 19880-0353, USA.
Kinney
Anthony J
AJ
D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005818:Genetic Engineering; D006801:Humans; D010938:Plant Oils / Q000737:chemistry*; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified / Q000378:metabolism*
D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated; D010938:Plant Oils