Synthesis of fatty acids

• US 8,816,106 B2
• Filed: 08/29/2007
• Issued: 08/26/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/29/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Commonwealth Scientific & Industrial Research Organisation (Commonwealth Of Australia As Represented By Department Of Industry, Innovation, Climate Change, Science, Research And Tertiary Education)
• Original Assignee: Commonwealth Scientific & Industrial Research Organisation (Commonwealth Of Australia As Represented By Department Of Industry, Innovation, Climate Change, Science, Research And Tertiary Education), Grains Research & Development Corporation
• Inventors: Green, Allan, Haritos, Victoria S., Horne, Irene, Singh, Surinder Pal, Zhou, Xue-Rong, Damcevski, Katherine, Glover, Karen, Wood, Craig C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Cutliff, Yate K
• Application Number:
  US12/310,645
• Publication Number:
  US 20110190521A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,554 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 554/9
• CPC Class Codes: C11B 1/10 by extracting
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 15/8247 involving modified lipid metabolism, e.g. seed oil composition
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 9/0004 Oxidoreductases (1.)
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 9/0071 acting on paired donors with incorporation of molecular oxygen (1.14)
• CPC Class Codes: C12N 9/48 acting on peptide bonds (3.4)
• CPC Class Codes: C12P 7/6427 Polyunsaturated fatty acids [PUFA], i.e. having two or more double bonds in their backbone
• CPC Class Codes: C12P 7/6431 Linoleic acids [18:2[n-6]]

Abstract

The present invention relates to enzymes which possess desaturase, conjugase, epoxidase and/or hydroxylase activity that can be used in methods of synthesizing fatty acids.

Claims

1. A process for producing oil containing unsaturated fatty acids comprising

i) obtaining a plant or part thereof comprising an acyl-CoA Δ

12 desaturase and an increased level of 16;

2<sup>Δ

9,Δ

12</sup> and/or 18;

2<sup>Δ

9,Δ

12</sup> fatty acids relative to a corresponding plant or part thereof lacking the acyl-CoA Δ

12 desaturase, and

ii) extracting oil from the plant or part thereof.

2. The process of claim 1, wherein step ii) comprises producing crude oil by cooking, pressing and/or crushing the plant or part thereof.

3. The process of claim 2 which further comprises

degumming, refining, bleaching and/or deodorizing the crude oil.

4. The process of claim 1 which comprises using a solvent to extract the crude oil.

5. The process of claim 1, wherein the plant or part thereof is a seed.

6. The process of claim 1, wherein the plant is an oilseed.

7. The process of claim 1, wherein the plant or part thereof comprises an increased level of 16:

2<sup>Δ

9,Δ

12</sup> and/or 18;

2<sup>Δ

9,Δ

12</sup> fatty acids which are esterified to CoA relative to a corresponding plant or part thereof lacking the acyl-CoA Δ

12 desaturase.