Long chain (C C 20) polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFAs) represent important components of the human diet. Currently, the predominant sources of these fatty acids are marine fish and algal oils, but high production costs and diminishing feedstock, limit their supply and usage. A more regular sustainable source of these compounds is urgently required and therefore research is being conducted t...

BACKGROUND Although unsaturated fatty acids such as eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, C20:5n-3), docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, C22:6n-3) and arachidonic acid (ARA, C20:4n-6), collectively known as the highly unsaturated fatty acids (HUFA), play pivotal roles in vertebrate reproduction, very little is known about their synthesis in the ovary. The zebrafish (Danio rerio) display capability to synthesize a...

Highly unsaturated fatty acid (HUFA) synthesis in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) was known to be influenced by both nutritional and environmental factors. Here we aimed to test the hypothesis that both these effectors involved similar molecular mechanisms. Thus, HUFA biosynthetic activity and the expression of fatty acyl desaturase and elongase genes were determined at various points during an e...

Ricinoleic acid (RA), a hydroxyl fatty acid, is suitable for medical and industrial uses and is produced in high-oil-accumulating organisms such as castor bean and the ergot fungus Claviceps. We report here the efficient production of RA in a transgenic diatom Chaetoceros gracilis expressing the fatty acid hydroxylase gene (CpFAH) from Claviceps purpurea. In transgenic C. gracilis, RA content i...

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection rewires host-cell metabolism, upregulating flux from glucose into acetyl-CoA to feed fatty acid metabolism, with saturated very-long-chain fatty acids (VLFCAs) required for production of infectious virion progeny. The human genome encodes seven elongase enzymes (ELOVL) that extend long-chain fatty acids into VLCFA. Here, we identify ELOVL7 as pivotal for H...

Primary aerial surfaces of land plants are coated by a lipidic cuticle, which forms a barrier against transpirational water loss and protects the plant from diverse stresses. Four enzymes of a fatty acid elongase complex are required for the synthesis of very-long-chain fatty acid (VLCFA) precursors of cuticular waxes. Fatty acid elongase substrate specificity is determined by a condensing enzy...

A whole-genome scan was conducted on 328 F(2) progeny in a Wagyu x Limousin cross to identify quantitative trait loci (QTL) affecting palatability and fatty acid composition of beef at an age-constant endpoint. We have identified seven QTL on five chromosomes involved in lipid metabolism and tenderness. None of the genes encoding major enzymes involved in fatty acid metabolism, such as fatty ac...

In characterizing the enzymes involved in the formation of very long-chain fatty acids (VLCFAs) i n the Brassicaceae, we have generated a series of mutants of Arabidopsis thaliana that have reduced VLCFA content. Here we report the characterization of a seed lipid mutant, AS1 1, which, in comparison to wild type (WT), has reduced levels of 20:l and 18:l and accumulates 18:3 as the major fatty a...

Studies suggested that in human adults, linoleic acid (LA) inhibits the biosynthesis of n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA), but their effects in growing subjects are largely unknown. We used growing pigs as a model to investigate whether high LA intake affects the conversion of n-3 LC-PUFA by determining fatty acid composition and mRNA levels of Δ5- and Δ6 desaturase and elong...