CIRAD, UMR DIADE, Montpellier, France.
Nat Commun. 2013;4:2160. doi: 10.1038/ncomms3160.
The oil palm fruit mesocarp contains high lipase activity that increases free fatty acids and necessitates post-harvest inactivation by heat treatment of fruit bunches. Even before heat treatment the mesocarp lipase activity causes consequential oil losses and requires costly measures to limit free fatty acids quantities. Here we demonstrate that elite low-lipase lines yield oil with substantially less free fatty acids than standard genotypes, allowing more flexibility for post-harvest fruit processing and extended ripening for increased yields. We identify the lipase and its gene cosegregates with the low-/high-lipase trait, providing breeders a marker to rapidly identify potent elite genitors and introgress the trait into major cultivars. Overall, economic gains brought by wide adoption of this material could represent up to one billion dollars per year. Expected benefits concern all planters but are likely to be highest for African smallholders who would be more able to produce oil that meets international quality standards.
油棕果实的中果皮含有高活性的脂肪酶，会增加游离脂肪酸的含量，因此需要通过热处理来灭活果实束。即使在热处理之前，中果皮脂肪酶活性也会导致油的损失，需要采取昂贵的措施来限制游离脂肪酸的含量。在这里，我们证明了低脂肪酶的优良品系产生的油中游离脂肪酸含量明显低于标准基因型，这为收获后的果实加工提供了更大的灵活性，并延长了果实的成熟时间，以提高产量。我们鉴定出了脂肪酶及其基因与低/高脂肪酶特性共分离，为育种者提供了一个标记，可以快速鉴定出有潜力的优良种源，并将该特性导入主要品种。总的来说，广泛采用这种材料所带来的经济效益每年可达 10 亿美元。预期的收益涉及到所有种植者，但对非洲小农户的影响可能最大，因为他们将能够生产出符合国际质量标准的油。
