De novo biosynthesis of linoleic acid is widespread in parasitic wasps

Abstract

Linoleic acid (C18:2 Δ9,12 , LA) is an important metabolite with numerous essential functions for growth, health, and reproduction of organisms. It has long been assumed that animals lack Δ12-desaturases, the enzymes needed to produce LA from oleic acid (C18:1 Δ9 , OA). There is, however, increasing evidence that this is not generally true for invertebrates. In the insect order Hymenoptera, LA biosynthesis has been shown for only two parasitic wasp species of the so-called "Nasonia group," but it is unknown whether members of other taxa are also capable of synthesizing LA. Here, we demonstrate LA biosynthesis in 13 out of 14 species from six families of parasitic wasps by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis using two different stable isotope labeling techniques. Females of the studied species converted topically applied fully 13 C-labeled OA into LA and/or produced labeled LA after feeding on fully 13 C-labeled α-D-glucose. These results indicate that Δ12-desaturases are widespread in parasitic Hymenoptera and confirm previous studies demonstrating that these insects are capable of synthesizing fatty acids de novo.

An investigation of the growth status of 19-year-old Idesia polycarpa ‘Yuji’ plantation forest in the mountainous region of Henan, China

“…On the other hand, studies have shown that linoleic acid intake positively reduces the risk of cardiovascular disease in healthy individuals [ [70] , [71] , [72] ]. Linoleic acid is an essential metabolite of organisms and plays a vital role in growth and reproduction [ [73] , [74] , [75] ]. In this study, the linoleic acid content in fruit oil of ‘Yuji’ in 2020 reached 54.87% ( Table 4 ).…”

The biological significance of lipogenesis in Nasonia vitripennis

“…Furthermore, even those species emerging with rich lipid reserves might synthesize fatty acids later in their lives to replenish ebbing fat reserves due to energy-sapping activities such as foraging and egg laying, without resulting in measurable lipid mass gain. In agreement with this idea, recent studies using stable isotope labelling approaches and chemical analyses by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) demonstrated that parasitic wasps do not generally lack lipogenesis but are able to convert glucose into fatty acid derivatives [12–14]. Wasps fed 13 C-labelled α- d -glucose showed the 13 C-label in fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) obtained by transesterification of their raw lipids.…”