AUTHOR=Petrie James R. , Zhou Xue-Rong , Leonforte Antonio , McAllister Jason , Shrestha Pushkar , Kennedy Yoko , Belide Srinivas , Buzza Greg , Gororo Nelson , Gao Wenxiang , Lester Geraldine , Mansour Maged P. , Mulder Roger J. , Liu Qing , Tian Lijun , Silva Claudio , Cogan Noel O. I. , Nichols Peter D. , Green Allan G. , de Feyter Robert , Devine Malcolm D. , Singh Surinder P. 

TITLE=Development of a Brassica napus (Canola) Crop Containing Fish Oil-Like Levels of DHA in the Seed Oil

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=11

YEAR=2020

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2020.00727

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2020.00727

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<p>Plant seeds have long been promoted as a production platform for novel fatty acids such as the ω3 long-chain (≥ C<sub>20</sub>) polyunsaturated fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) commonly found in fish oil. In this article we describe the creation of a canola (<italic>Brassica napus</italic>) variety producing fish oil-like levels of DHA in the seed. This was achieved by the introduction of a microalgal/yeast transgenic pathway of seven consecutive enzymatic steps which converted the native substrate oleic acid to α-linolenic acid and, subsequently, to EPA, docosapentaenoic acid (DPA) and DHA. This paper describes construct design and evaluation, plant transformation, event selection, field testing in a wide range of environments, and oil profile stability of the transgenic seed. The stable, high-performing event NS-B50027-4 produced fish oil-like levels of DHA (9–11%) in open field trials of T<sub>3</sub> to T<sub>7</sub> generation plants in several locations in Australia and Canada. This study also describes the highest seed DHA levels reported thus far and is one of the first examples of a deregulated genetically modified crop with clear health benefits to the consumer.</p>