Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are essential fatty acids with health benefits, including reducing cardiovascular disease risk and having anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory effects. PUFAs can be obtained through foods, such as marine fish, plants, and oleaginous microorganisms. However, the sustainability and instability of the marine fish source and the seasonality and climate change dependence of plant sources have led to an interest in microbial PUFA-producers. Microorganisms like bacteria, microalgae, fungi, and protists can accumulate PUFAs, with PUFA-producing eukaryotes having an advantage in producing PUFAs due to higher biomass and lipid accumulation. The PUFA synthase pathway is an anaerobic pathway that does not require molecular oxygen and produces fewer byproducts compared to the desaturase/elongase pathway. The PUFA synthase pathway has been identified in various eukaryotes, including Schizochytrium species, which can produce DHA and EPA. Researchers have engineered Schizochytrium to produce DHA and EPA, and there is ongoing research to optimize PUFA production and develop new PUFA-producing microorganisms.
_resolvering the Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Biosynthesis Pathway from Eukaryotic Microbial sources
