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Identification and characterization of a novel C20-elongase gene from the marine microalgae, Pavlova viridis, and its use for the reconstitution of two pathways of long-chain polyunsatured fatty acids biosynthesis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

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Abstract

The marine microalga, Pavlova viridis, contains long-chain polyunsatured fatty acids including eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA, 20:5n-3) and docosapentaenoic acid (DPA, 22:5n-3). A full-length cDNA sequence, pvelo5, was isolated from P. viridis. From sequence alignment, the gene was homologous to fatty acyl elongases from other organisms. Heterologous expression of pvelo5 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae confirmed that it encoded a specific C20-elongase within the n-3 and n-6 pathways. Elongation activity was confined exclusively to EPA and arachidonic acid (20:4n-6). GC analysis indicated that pvelo5 could co-express with other genes for biosynthesis to reconstitute the Δ8 and Δ6 pathways. Real-time PCR results and fatty acid analysis demonstrated that long-chain polyunsatured fatty acids production by the Δ8 pathway might be more effective than that by the Δ6 pathway.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 31270096).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Molecular Microbiology and Technology, Ministry of Education, Department of Microbiology, Nankai University, Tianjin, 300071, China

    Tonglei Shi, Aiqun Yu, Ming Li, Meng Zhang, Laijun Xing & Mingchun Li

  2. Key Laboratory of Industrial Microbiology, Ministry of Education, the School of Bioengineering, Tianjin University of Science and Technology, Tianjin, 300457, China

    Ming Li

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  1. Tonglei Shi
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  2. Aiqun Yu
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  3. Ming Li
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  4. Meng Zhang
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  5. Laijun Xing
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Correspondence to Mingchun Li.

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Shi, T., Yu, A., Li, M. et al. Identification and characterization of a novel C20-elongase gene from the marine microalgae, Pavlova viridis, and its use for the reconstitution of two pathways of long-chain polyunsatured fatty acids biosynthesis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae . Biotechnol Lett 35, 1271–1282 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10529-013-1194-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10529-013-1194-6

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