The liverwort Marchantia polymorpha L. synthesizes arachidonic (ARA) and eicosapentaenoic acids (EPA) from linoleic and α-linolenic acids respectively by a series of reactions catalyzed by Δ6-desaturase, Δ6-elongase, and Δ5-desaturase. Overexpression of the M. polymorpha genes encoding these enzymes in transgenic M. polymorpha plants resulted in 3- and 2-fold accumulation of ARA and EPA respectively, as compared to those in the wild type. When these three genes were introduced and co-expressed in tobacco plants, in which long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFAs) are not native cellular components, ARA and EPA represented up to 15.5% and 4.9% respectively of the total fatty acid in the leaves. Similarly in soybean, C20-LCPUFAs represented up to 19.5% of the total fatty acids in the seeds. These results suggest that M. polymorpha can provide genes crucial to the production of C20-LCPUFAs in transgenic plants.
CITATION STYLE
Kajikawa, M., Matsui, K., Ochiai, M., Tanaka, Y., Kita, Y., Ishimoto, M., … Kohchi, T. (2008). Production of arachidonic and eicosapentaenoic acids in plants using bryophyte fatty acid Δ6-desaturase, Δ6-elongase, and Δ5-desaturase genes. Bioscience, Biotechnology and Biochemistry, 72(2), 435–444. https://doi.org/10.1271/bbb.70549
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