ARS | Publication request: PRODUCTION OF MULTIHYDROXY FATTY ACIDS FROM LINOLEIC ACID BY CLAVIBACTER SP. ALA2

Submitted to: Journal of the American Oil Chemists' Society
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: August 10, 1998
Publication Date: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Hydroxy fatty acids are important industrial materials. We have succeeded in converting vegetable oils into a trihydroxy unsaturated fatty acid by a newly isolated microbial strain ALA2. Now, we have identified two additional products from this system. The structures of these products resemble those of plant self-defense substances. These products inhibited the growth of some crop pathogenic fungi. These products can also be used as intermediates in the synthesis of value-added industrial chemicals. Application of these products either as agent for anti-pathogenic fungi or as high volume intermediates such as diacids for the synthesis of special military nylon will be benefit to the U.S. farmers.

Technical Abstract: Hydroxy fatty acids are important industrial materials. We isolated a microbial culture, Clavibacter sp. ALA2, which converts linoleic acid to many multihydroxy fatty acids. Structures of these products were determined as: 12,13,17- trihydroxy-9(Z)-octadecenoic (THOA, main product), 12-[5-ethyl- 2-tetrahydrofuranyl]-7,12-dihydroxy-9Z-dodecenoic (ETDDA), and 12-[5-ethyl-2-tetrahydrofuranyl]-12-hydroxy-9Z-dodecenoic (ETHDA) acid. The yield of THOA was 25% and the relative amount of these products produced were THOA:ETDDA:ETHDA = 9:1.3:1. The structures of these hydroxy unsaturated fatty acids resemble those of plant self-defense substances.