Journal of Lipid Research, Vol. 5, 593-599, October 1964
Copyright © 1964 by Lipid Research, Inc.

Oxidation of unsaturated fatty acids by leaf tissue

C. Hitchcock and A. T. James

Biosynthesis Division, Unilever Research Laboratory, Colworth House, Sharnbrook, Bedford, England

Plant leaf systems have been incubated under various conditions with uniformly labeled oleic acid, and the breakdown products identified by gas-liquid chromatography. Young green leaves of the castor plant (Ricinis gibsonii) and of the field pea plant (Pisum sativum) catabolize oleic acid by an oxygen-requiring pathway to heptadec-8-enal which is then dehydrogenated by an NAD-coupled mechanism to heptadec-8-enoic acid. Further -oxidation occurs with the production of hexadec-7-enoic acid and lower homologues. The -oxidizing ability is associated with the fraction of homogenized leaves that sediments between 700 and 7000 x g; the partly purified acetone powders of leaves retain this enzymatic activity in soluble form. Preliminary studies with uniformly labeled linoleic acid suggest that -oxidation of polyunsaturated acids also occurs in the leaf systems.

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