Drosophila lacks C20 and C22 PUFAs.
Drosophila melanogaster has been considered a model organism for investigating human diseases and genetic pathways. Whether Drosophila is an ideal model for nutrigenomics, especially for FA metabolism, however, remains to be illustrated. The aim of this study was to examine the metabolism of C20 and C22 PUFAs in Drosophila. Analysis of FA composition revealed a complete lack of C20 and C22 PUFAs in the body tissue of larvae, pupae, and adult flies fed either a base or supplemented diet abundant in the PUFA precursors linoleic acid and α-linolenic acid. PUFA with >C20 could only be found in flies supplemented with specific FAs. Interestingly, the supplemented C22 PUFAs docosahexaenoic acid (22:6n-3) and docosatetraenoic acid (22:4n-6) were largely converted to the shorter chain C20 PUFAs eicosapentaenoic acid (20:5n-3) and arachidonic acid (20:4n-6), respectively. Furthermore, a genome sequence scan indicated that no gene encoding Δ-6/ Δ-5 desaturases, the key enzymes for the synthesis of C20/C22 PUFA, was present in Drosophila. These findings demonstrate that Drosophila lacks the capability to synthesize the biologically important C20 and C22 PUFAs, and thereby argue that Drosophila is not a valid model for the study of lipid metabolism and related diseases.
Shen
Li Rong
LR
Department of Food Science & Nutrition, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
Lai
Chao Qiang
CQ
Feng
Xiang
X
Parnell
Laurence D
LD
Wan
Jian Bo
JB
Wang
Jing D
JD
Li
Duo
D
Ordovas
Jose M
JM
Kang
Jing X
JX
D000818:Animals; D004330:Drosophila / Q000378:metabolism*; D044943:Fatty Acid Desaturases / Q000378:metabolism; D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated / Q000378:metabolism*
D005231:Fatty Acids, Unsaturated; D044943:Fatty Acid Desaturases