PROCESS FOR PRODUCING ARACHIDONIC ACID AND/OR EICOSAPENTAENOIC ACID IN PLANTS

摘要

The present invention relates to a process for producing arachidonic acid (= ARA) or eicosapentaenoic acid (= EPA) or arachidonic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid, advantageously in the seed of transgenic plants of the family Brassicaceae having a content of ARA or EPA, or ARA and EPA, of at least 3% by weight, based on the total lipid content of the transgenic plant, by introducing into the organism nucleic acids which code for polypeptides having ?-6-desaturase, ?-6-elongase and ?-5-desaturase activity, wherein, as a result of the enzymatic activity of the introduced enzymes, a fatty acid selected from the group consisting of the fatty acids oleic acid [C18:1^?9], linoleic acid [C18:2^{?9, 12}], a-linolenic acid [C18:3^{?6, 9, 12}], eicosenoic acid (20:1^?11) and erucic acid [C22:1^?13] is reduced by at least 10% compared with the nontransgenic wild type plant. Advantageously, other enzymes selected from the group of the enzymes ?-3-desaturases, ?-12-desaturases, ?-6-desaturases, ?-6-elongases, ?-5-desaturases, ?-5-elongases and/or ?-4-desaturases can be introduced into the plants.