Method for the production of high saturated, low polyunsaturated soybean oil
Methods of genetically modifying soybean plants to alter the fatty acid properties of the oil are described.
1. A method of making a transgenic soybean plant, comprising expressing a heterologous nucleic acid sequence encoding a wrinkled (wri) 1 polypeptide in a soybean plant, wherein the heterologous nucleic acid sequence encoding the wri 1 polypeptide has at least 95% sequence identity to the nucleic acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:1; expressing a heterologous nucleic acid sequence encoding a stearoyl-ACP thioesterase polypeptide in the soybean plant; and inhibiting expression of an endogenous FAD2-1 delta-12 fatty acid desaturase nucleic acid in the soybean plant.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nucleic acid sequence encoding the wri 1 polypeptide is expressed from a seed-specific promoter.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein inhibiting the expression comprises expressing a transgene comprising an inhibitory RNA molecule.
4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the transgene further comprises a seed-specific promoter.
5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the transgenic soybean plant comprises oil that exhibits a decreased amount of palmitic acid relative to a non-transgenic soybean plant.
6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the transgenic soybean plant comprises oil that exhibits an increased amount of stearate relative to a non-transgenic soybean plant.
7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the transgenic soybean plant comprises oil that exhibits an increased amount of oleate relative to a non-transgenic soybean plant.
8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the transgenic soybean plant comprises oil that exhibits an increased amount of saturated fatty acids and a decreased amount of polyunsaturated fatty acids relative to a non-transgenic soybean plant.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the heterologous wrinkled (wri) 1 nucleic acid sequence has the nucleic acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:1.
10. The method of claim 1 , wherein the heterologous stearoyl-ACP thioesterase nucleic acid sequence has at least 95% sequence identity to the nucleic acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:2.
11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the heterologous stearoyl-ACP thioesterase nucleic acid sequence has the nucleic acid sequence shown in SEQ ID NO:2.
12. The method of claim 1 , wherein inhibiting the expression comprises introducing a mutation into the endogenous FAD2-1 delta-12 fatty acid desaturase nucleic acid.
13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nucleic acid sequence encoding the stearoyl-ACP thioesterase polypeptide is expressed from a seed-specific promoter.
14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the nucleic acid sequence encoding the wri 1 polypeptide is expressed from a seed-specific promoter, and wherein the nucleic acid sequence encoding the stearoyl-ACP thioesterase polypeptide is expressed from a seed-specific promoter.
15. The method of claim 12 , wherein the mutation is selected from the group consisting of a point mutation, an insertion, a deletion, a substitution, and combinations thereof.