Oil Biosynthesis and Biotechnology in the Castor Bean

García Maroto, Federico; López Alonso, Diego

doi:10.1007/978-3-319-97280-0_11

Federico García Maroto⁴ &
Diego López Alonso⁴

Part of the book series: Compendium of Plant Genomes ((CPG))

326 Accesses

Abstract

The castor bean plant, Ricinus communis L., is an oleaginous species that produces a very unusual oil, composed mainly of ricinoleic acid (ca. 90%). This fatty acid is a hydroxylated derivative (18:1OH) of common oleic acid, and it has a great range of industrial applications. As a result, castor oil is regarded as one of the most important renewable resources for the chemical industry. However, there are certain drawbacks in the use of this plant due to the presence of highly toxic ricin in its seeds, as well as some strong allergens found both in seed and pollen. Current knowledge of the metabolic routes involved in castor oil biosynthesis, and the molecular mechanisms responsible for the efficient channeling of ricinoleic acid into the seed oil, have opened the way for genetic engineering approaches aimed at producing castor-like oils from common oleaginous species. Domestication of the castor plant through biotechnological strategies is also being envisaged as a feasible alternative to improve the common source of ricinoleic acid. This chapter describes the current knowledge of oil biosynthesis in castor bean, as well as biotechnological approaches being explored to improve the available sources of ricinoleic acid.

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Abbreviations

CoA:: Coenzyme A
CPT:: Choline phosphotransferase
DGAT:: Diacylglycerol acyltransferase
DGTA:: Diacylglycerol:diacylglycerol transacylase
ER:: Endoplasmic reticulum
FA:: Fatty acid
FAD2:: Fatty acid desaturase 2
FAH12:: Fatty acid hydroxylase 12
G3P:: Glycerol-3-phosphate
GPAT:: Glycerol-3-phosphate acyltransferase
LACS:: Long-chain acyl-CoA synthetase
LPA:: Lysophosphatidic acid
LPAT:: Lysophosphatidate acyltransferase
LPC:: Lysophosphatidylcholine
LPCAT:: Lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase
MBOAT:: Membrane Bound O-acyltransferase
OA:: Oleic acid
Ole-CoA:: Oleoyl-CoA
Ole-PC:: sn-2-oleoyl-phosphatidylcholine
PAH:: Phosphatidic acid hydrolase
PC:: Phosphatidylcholine
PDAT:: Phospholipid:diacylglycerol acyltransferase
PLA2:: Phospholipase A2
PLC:: Phospholipase C
RA:: Ricinoleic acid
Ric-CoA:: Ricinoleoyl-CoA
TAG:: Triacylglycerol
TFA:: Total fatty acids

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Grupo de Investigación “Biotecnología de Productos Naturales” (BIO-279), CEIA3, BITAL, Universidad de Almería, CITEIIB, 04120, Almería, Spain
Federico García Maroto & Diego López Alonso

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Federico García Maroto
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Diego López Alonso
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Raja Ramanna Fellow, Department of Atomic Energy, Government of India, ICAR-National Research Center on Plant Biotechnology, New Delhi, India
Chittaranjan Kole
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Pablo Rabinowicz

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García Maroto, F., López Alonso, D. (2018). Oil Biosynthesis and Biotechnology in the Castor Bean. In: Kole, C., Rabinowicz, P. (eds) The Castor Bean Genome. Compendium of Plant Genomes. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-97280-0_11

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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-97280-0_11
Published: 19 February 2019
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-97279-4
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-97280-0
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