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Bioengineered algal lipids enriched in structured medium- and long-chain triacylglycerols, linoleate, and sn-2 palmitate for human milk fat substitutes

  • J. Y.-T. Lin
  • M. A. Duenas
  • S. M. Kosina
  • A. T. Iavarone
  • K. Khoo
  • C. D. Nicora
  • S. O. Purvine
  • T. R. Northen
  • J. L. Moseley
  • S. S. Merchant1
  1. 1University of California, Berkeley
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Abstract

Triacylglycerols (TAGs) in human milkfat (HMF) provide over 50% of the calories for infant nutrition. Their unique architecture, featuring palmitic acid predominantly esterified at the sn-2 position, facilitates absorption as 2-palmitoyl monoacylglycerol after hydrolysis of the sn-1 and sn-3 fatty acids by gut lipases. Conventional vegetable oil-based infant formulas mimic the HMF fatty acid profile but lack its distinct regioisomeric structure, abundant medium- and long-chain triglycerides (MLCTs), and oleic-to-linoleic acid ratios that vary with maternal diet and geography. We have engineered the oleaginous green alga Auxenochlorella for biosynthesis of TAGs enriched in MLCTs, sn-2 palmitate, and linoleate via heterologous expression of acyl-acyl-carrier-protein (ACP) thioesterases, palmitate-specific lysophosphatidic acid acyltransferases, and lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase. These structured algal lipids replicate both the major fatty acid proportions and regioisomeric composition of authentic HMF, providing single-source bioengineered alternatives to plant-derived HMF substitutes for infant formula.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@misc{lin2026bioengineered,
  title = {{Bioengineered algal lipids enriched in structured medium- and long-chain triacylglycerols, linoleate, and sn-2 palmitate for human milk fat substitutes}},
  author = {J. Y.-T. Lin and M. A. Duenas and S. M. Kosina and A. T. Iavarone and K. Khoo and C. D. Nicora and S. O. Purvine and T. R. Northen and J. L. Moseley and S. S. Merchant},
  howpublished = {bioRxiv},
  year = {2026},
  month = may,
  doi = {10.64898/2026.05.15.725531},
  url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.05.15.725531v2},
  note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY  - UNPB
TI  - Bioengineered algal lipids enriched in structured medium- and long-chain triacylglycerols, linoleate, and sn-2 palmitate for human milk fat substitutes
AU  - J. Y.-T. Lin
AU  - M. A. Duenas
AU  - S. M. Kosina
AU  - A. T. Iavarone
AU  - K. Khoo
AU  - C. D. Nicora
AU  - S. O. Purvine
AU  - T. R. Northen
AU  - J. L. Moseley
AU  - S. S. Merchant
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/05/15
PB  - bioRxiv
DO  - 10.64898/2026.05.15.725531
UR  - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.05.15.725531v2
AB  - Triacylglycerols (TAGs) in human milkfat (HMF) provide over 50% of the calories for infant nutrition. Their unique architecture, featuring palmitic acid predominantly esterified at the sn-2 position, facilitates absorption as 2-palmitoyl monoacylglycerol after hydrolysis of the sn-1 and sn-3 fatty acids by gut lipases. Conventional vegetable oil-based infant formulas mimic the HMF fatty acid profile but lack its distinct regioisomeric structure, abundant medium- and long-chain triglycerides (MLCTs), and oleic-to-linoleic acid ratios that vary with maternal diet and geography. We have engineered the oleaginous green alga Auxenochlorella for biosynthesis of TAGs enriched in MLCTs, sn-2 palmitate, and linoleate via heterologous expression of acyl-acyl-carrier-protein (ACP) thioesterases, palmitate-specific lysophosphatidic acid acyltransferases, and lysophosphatidylcholine acyltransferase. These structured algal lipids replicate both the major fatty acid proportions and regioisomeric composition of authentic HMF, providing single-source bioengineered alternatives to plant-derived HMF substitutes for infant formula.
ER  -