Schitzochytrium PKS genes

• Main Authors: LASSNER, MICHAEL, METZ, JAMES GEORGE, FACCIOTTI, DANIEL
• Format: Patent
• Language: English; French; German
• Published: 15.06.2011
• Subjects: AGRICULTURE; ANIMAL AND VEGETABLE OILS, FATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES AND WAXES; ANIMAL HUSBANDRY; BEER; BIOCHEMISTRY; CANDLES; CHEMISTRY; COMPOSITIONS THEREOF; CULTURE MEDIA; DETERGENTS; EDIBLE OILS OR FATS, e.g. MARGARINES, SHORTENINGS, COOKINGOILS; ENZYMOLOGY; ESSENTIAL OILS; FATS, OILS OR FATTY ACIDS BY CHEMICAL MODIFICATION OF FATS,OILS, OR FATTY ACIDS OBTAINED THEREFROM; FATTY ACIDS FROM FATS, OILS OR WAXES; FATTY ACIDS THEREFROM; FERMENTATION OR ENZYME-USING PROCESSES TO SYNTHESISE A DESIREDCHEMICAL COMPOUND OR COMPOSITION OR TO SEPARATE OPTICAL ISOMERSFROM A RACEMIC MIXTURE; FISHING; FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS; FOODS, FOODSTUFFS, OR NON-ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES, NOT COVERED BYSUBCLASSES A23B - A23J; FORESTRY; HUMAN NECESSITIES; HUNTING; METALLURGY; MICROBIOLOGY; MICROORGANISMS OR ENZYMES; MUTATION OR GENETIC ENGINEERING; NEW PLANTS OR PROCESSES FOR OBTAINING THEM; ORGANIC CHEMISTRY; PEPTIDES; PERFUMES; PLANT REPRODUCTION BY TISSUE CULTURE TECHNIQUES; PRESERVATION OF FOODS OR FOODSTUFFS, IN GENERAL; PROCESSES USING MICROORGANISMS; PRODUCING (PRESSING, EXTRACTION), REFINING AND PRESERVINGFATS, FATTY SUBSTANCES (e.g. LANOLIN), FATTY OILS AND WAXES,INCLUDING EXTRACTION FROM WASTE MATERIALS; PROPAGATING, PRESERVING OR MAINTAINING MICROORGANISMS; SPIRITS; THEIR PREPARATION OR TREATMENT, e.g. COOKING, MODIFICATION OFNUTRITIVE QUALITIES, PHYSICAL TREATMENT; THEIR TREATMENT, NOT COVERED BY OTHER CLASSES; TRAPPING; VINEGAR; WINE

The present invention relates to compositions and methods for preparing poly-unsaturated long chain fatty acids in plants, plant parts and plant cells, such as leaves, roots, fruits and seeds. Nucleic acid sequences and constructs encoding PKS-like genes requires for the poly-unsaturated long chain fatty acid production, including the genes responsible for eicosapentenoic acid production of Shewanella putrefaciens and novel genes associated with the production docosahexenoic acid in Vibrio marinus are used to generate transgenic plants, plant parts and cells which contain and express one or more transgenes encoding one or more of the PKS-like genes associated with such long chain poly-unsaturated fatty acid production. Expression of the PKS-like genes in the plant system permits the large scale production of poly-unsaturated long chain fatty acids such as eicosapentenoic acid and docosahexonoic acid for modification of the fatty acid profile of plants, plants parts and tissues. Manipulation of the fatty acid profiles allows for the production of commercial quantities of novel plats oils and products.