利用海洋微拟球藻生产蜂王浆主效成分24-亚甲基胆固醇的研究*

用于生产生物燃料的微藻生物技术正处于十字路口,但仍在不断发展。微藻衍生的多产品技术的发展将大大提高经济可行性,特别是结合生产高附加值化合物。研究结果表明敲除海洋微拟球藻中的DWARF1 (DWF1)基因的突变株具有比野生型更高的色素含量和光合效率,并且还可以显著降低胆固醇积累(这可能是人类心血管疾病的主要危险因素),使其从原本占总甾醇 (TSs) 超过70%的含量减少至零。相比之下,其前体24-亚甲基胆固醇(一种对人类健康有益的蜂王浆的关键微量营养素)的产量则从零增加到60%以上。结合海洋微拟球藻中ω-3脂肪酸含量高的特点,我们预计在工业规模上开发该菌株将带来可观的利润。

Production of 24- Methylenecholesterol from Royal Jelly by Nannocloropsis oceanica IMET1

Microalgal biotechnology for biofuels is at a crossroads and its development is still in flux. The development of microalga-derived multi-product technology will greatly improve the economic viability, particularly with a combination of the production of high value-added compounds. The results showed that the mutants with DWARF1 (DWF1) gene knocked out had higher pigment content and photosynthetic efficiency than the wild type, and could also significantly reduce the accumulation of cholesterol (which might act as a leading risk factor for human cardiovascular disease) from over 70% of total sterols (TSs) to null. In contrast, the production of its precursor 24-methylenecholesterol (a critical micronutrient of royal jelly that is beneficial to human health) was increased from null to more than 60% of TSs. Combined with the high content of omega-3 fatty acids of N. oceanica, we anticipate an appreciable profit by exploiting this strain on an industrial scale.