Whitney, Heather M., Michaelson, Louise V., Sayanova, Olga, Pickett, John A.  ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8386-3770 and Napier, Johnathan A.
2003.
Functional characterisation of two cytochrome b5-fusion desaturases from Anemone leveillei: The unexpected identification of a fatty acid Δ6-desaturase.
Planta
217
(6)
, pp. 983-992.
10.1007/s00425-003-1069-5
|
Abstract
The Ranunculaceae are known to accumulate a wide range of unusual fatty acids in their seed lipids, and this variability has been advocated as a taxonomic marker. The Anemone species, Anemone leveillei L. and Anemone rivularis Buch.-Ham., have previously been reported to accumulate Δ5-desaturated fatty acids in their seed tissue [K. Aitzetmüller (1995) Plant Syst Evol 9:229–240]. Two cDNAs, AL1 and AL2, with similarity to plant cytochrome b 5-fusion "front-end" desaturases were isolated from developing seeds of A. leveillei and their function identified by expression in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. AL2 was characterised as a sphingolipid long-chain-base Δ8-desaturase, while AL1 acted as a fatty acid desaturase. However, AL1 did not produce Δ5-desaturated fatty acids as expected; instead, when expressed in transgenic S. cerevisiae or Arabidopsis thaliana this enzyme was functionally characterised as a Δ6-desaturase. Northern analysis confirmed the expression of this gene in seed tissue and leaf tissue of A. leveillei, though Δ6-desaturated fatty acids were found to accumulate only in the leaf tissue. The unexpected characterisation of a Δ6-desaturase in A. leveillei has implications for the use of fatty acids in chemotaxonomic studies. This is also the first report of a higher-plant Δ6-desaturase from a family other than the Boraginaceae.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Date Type: | Publication |
| Status: | Published |
| Schools: | Schools > Chemistry |
| Publisher: | Springer |
| ISSN: | 0032-0935 |
| Date of Acceptance: | 13 May 2003 |
| Last Modified: | 05 Mar 2026 15:01 |
| URI: | https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/185540 |
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