Δ12/Δ15脂肪酸脱饱和酶在多不饱和脂肪酸生产中的应用研究进展

Advances in Application of Δ12/Δ15 Fatty Acid Desaturases in Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Production

摘要:

Δ12/Δ15脂肪酸脱饱和酶（FADS12/15）广泛存在于植物、动物和微生物中，是多不饱和脂肪酸（polyunsaturated fatty acids， PUFAs）合成的关键酶，在其生产中发挥着重要作用。PUFAs具有广泛的益生功能，但是由于人体内缺乏FADS12/15，无法合成亚油酸和α-亚麻酸，因此必须通过食物摄入来补充。此外，人体对其他PUFAs的需求也很高，迫切需要开发优质的PUFAs生产者。微生物是脂肪酸生产的潜在资源，通过FADS12/15基因工程改造可有效提高ω-3和ω-6 PUFAs的产量，从而为人类提供优质的生物脂质资源。作者综述了FADS12/15参与的脂肪酸合成途径及其催化机理，以及FADS12/15基因过表达体系和基因工程微生物种类，总结了FADS12/15同源或异源表达生产PUFAs的研究现状，旨在为FADS12/15基因工程研究和PUFAs的高效生产提供参考。

Abstract:

Fatty acid desaturase, namely Δ12/Δ15 (FADS12/15) are widespread in plants, animals, and microorganisms. They are involved in the biosynthesis of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) and play an important role in the production of PUFAs. PUFAs provide various biological and physiological benefits, however, due to the lack of FADS12/15 in the human body, linoleic acid and α?-linolenic acid cannot be synthesized. Therefore, their intake must be derived from the diet. Furthermore, other PUFAs are essential for improving diet and human health. Thus, it is urgent to develop high-level PUFA producers. Microorganisms are potential fatty acid producers, and FADS12/15 genetic engineering has been performed to increase the yield of ω-3/ω-6 PUFAs, which provide humans with high-quality lipid resources. This article summarizes the fatty acid biosynthetic pathways and the catalytic mechanism of FADS12/15. It also reviews FADS12/15 overexpression system and genetically engineered microorganisms for PUFA production as well as the homologous or heterologous expression of FADS12/15 gene to produce PUFAs. The objective of this review is to provide the fundamental theory and efficient expression strategy for FADS12/15 genetic engineering to produce PUFAs.