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Flowering oilseed rape and seed. British
scientists have genetically engineered crops such as oilseed rape to
produce fish oil, offering a new approach to improving diet. (File
Photo)
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LONDON, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) -- British scientists have genetically engineered crops
such as oilseed rape to produce fish oil, offering a new approach to improving
diet.
Experiments by British scientists have proved that
crops containing genes from marine organisms are able to produce omega 3 fatty
acids, normally found in oily fish, the BBC reported Friday.
Scientists at Rothamsted Research in Harpenden,
Hertfordshire, north of London, isolated key genes from a species of microscopic
single-celled marine algae known as Thalassiosira pseudonana, inserted the genes
into crops such as linseed and oil seed rape, and found that the plants were
able to synthesize omega 3 fatty acids in their seed oils.
"We know that this works, we've done proof of concept
studies in model plants and also in crop plants and we can see the accumulation
of some of the fish oils we're interested in," research group leader Johnathan
Napier said.
Concerns over dwindling fish stocks and marine
pollution has led researchers to seek an alternative source of long-chain omega
3 fatty acids.
Omega 3 fatty acids are made not by the fish
themselves but by the marine microbes they consume.
Omega 3 fatty acids have important health benefits,
especially for the heart.
The scientists' eventual aim is to feed GM-enhanced
oils to animals such as chickens and cattle, in order to produce omega
3-enriched meat, milk and eggs.
Fish-oil supplements may protect against
blindness
BEIJING, June 26 (Xinhuanet) -- A recent study has
produced new evidence that omega-3 fatty acids, found in popular fish-oil
supplements, may protect against diseases that affect retinal blood vessels,
known as retinopathy, according to media reports Tuesday.
The study, published online by the journal Nature Medicine
Sunday, got the encouraging results in tests on mice. Full
story
