Method for the production of calendic acid, a fatty acid containing delta-8,10,12 conjugated double bonds and related fatty acids having a modification at the delta-9 position

An isolated nucleic acid fragment encoding a plant fatty acid modifying enzyme associated with conjugated double bond formation comprising a delta-9 position of fatty acids wherein said fragment or a functionally equivalent subfragment thereof encodes a protein comprising any one of the amino acid sequences set forth in SEQ ID NOs:2, 4, or 13.

The isolated nucleic acid fragment of claim 1, 2, 3, 47, 48 or 49 wherein said fragment is isolated from Calendula officinalis or Dimorphotheca sinuata.

The isolated nucleic acid fragment of claim 1, 2, 3, 47, 48 or 49 wherein the plant fatty acid modifying enzyme is associated with the formation of calendic acid or dimorphecolic acid.

A chimeric gene comprising the isolated nucleic acid fragment of claim 1, 2, 3, 47, 48 or 49 or a functionally equivalent subfragment thereof or a complement thereof operably linked to suitable regulatory sequences.

The isolated nucleic acid fragment of claim 1, 2, 3, 47, 48, or claim 49 wherein the computer program is selected from the group consisting of:

• the BLAST computational method (Basic Local Alignment Search Tool) which includes BLASTN (nucleotide, both strands), BLASTX (nucleotide, six-frame translation), BLASTP (protein), TBLASTN (protein, from six-frame translation), and TBLASTX (nucleotide, six-frame translation);
• the Megalign program of the LASARGENE bioinformatics computing method (DNASTAR), or the Clustal method of multiple sequence alignment.

The complement of the isolated nucleic acid fragment of any of claims 1, 2, 3, 47, 48 or 49.

An isolated nucleic acid fragment encoding a plant fatty acid modifying enzyme wherein said enzyme modifies a delta-9 position of fatty acids and further wherein said fragment or a functionally equivalent subfragment thereof

• (a) hybridizes to any of the nucleotide sequences set forth in SEQ ID NOs:1, 3, or 12 under conditions of moderate stringency or
• (b) is at least 40% identical to a polypeptide encoded by any of the nucleotide sequences set forth in SEQ ID NOs:1, 3, or 12 or a functionally equivalent subfragment thereof as determined by a comparison method designed to detect homologous sequences.

An isolated nucleic acid fragment encoding a plant fatty acid modifying enzyme wherein said enzyme modifies a delta-9 position of fatty acids and further wherein said fragment or a functionally equivalent subfragment thereof encodes a protein comprising any one of the amino acid sequences set forth in SEQ ID NOs:2, 4, or 13.

An isolated nucleic acid fragment encoding a plant fatty acid modifying enzyme associated with the formation of a trans delta-12 double bond wherein said enzyme modifies a delta-12 position of fatty acids and further wherein said fragment or a functionally equivalent subfragment thereof

• (a) hybridizes to any of the nucleotide sequences set forth in SEQ ID NO:10 under conditions of moderate stringency or
• (b) is at least 75% identical to a polypeptide encoded by any of the nucleotide sequences set forth in SEQ ID NO:10 or a functionally equivalent subfragment thereof as determined by a comparison method designed to detect homologous sequences.

An isolated nucleic acid fragment encoding a plant fatty acid modifying enzyme associated with the formation of a trans delta-12 double bond wherein said enzyme modifies a delta-12 position of fatty acids and further wherein said fragment or a functionally equivalent subfragment thereof encodes a protein comprising any one of the amino acid sequences set forth in SEQ ID NO:11.