PUFA synthase-independent DHA synthesis pathway in Parietichytrium sp. and its modification to produce EPA and n-3DPA

The demand for n-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3LC-PUFAs), such as docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), will exceed their supply in the near future, and a sustainable source of n-3LC-PUFAs is needed. Thraustochytrids are marine protists characterized by anaerobic biosynthesis of DHA via polyunsaturated fatty acid synthase (PUFA-S). Analysis of a homemade draft genome database suggested that Parietichytrium sp. lacks PUFA-S but possesses all fatty acid elongase (ELO) and desaturase (DES) genes required for DHA synthesis. The reverse genetic approach and a tracing experiment using stable isotope-labeled fatty acids revealed that the ELO/DES pathway is the only DHA synthesis pathway in Parietichytrium sp. Disruption of the C20 fatty acid ELO (C20ELO) and ∆4 fatty acid DES (∆4DES) genes with expression of ω3 fatty acid DES in this thraustochytrid allowed the production of EPA and n-3docosapentaenoic acid (n-3DPA), respectively, at the highest level among known microbial sources using fed-batch culture. Yohei Ishibashi and co-workers report that Parietichytrium sp. synthesizes DHA only via the elongase/desaturase pathway. They then engineered this thraustochytrid to produce EPA and n-3DPA by disrupting C20ELO and delta4 DES genes, respectively, in this biosynthetic pathway, suggesting that this may be a suitable system for the large scale production of these omega-3 fatty acids.