Producing punicic acid in yeast and evaluating its application in reducing antibiotic use in poultry via synthetic biology and broiler trial

加拿大家禽业正在逐步放弃在肉鸡和火鸡生产中使用抗生素生长促进剂（AGP）。AGP的替代产品对于维持可行和有利可图的家禽生产系统以及确保消费者获得安全和健康的食品至关重要。研究表明，石榴酸是一种可食用的共轭脂肪酸，具有很强的抗菌和抗炎活性，有望成为AGP的替代品。然而，其主要的天然来源（石榴籽油）约为25美元/公斤（桶装价格），这使得它不适合饲养肉鸡。本计画之目的在于利用面包酵母生产石榴酸，并评估其对肉鸡生长及生产性能之功效。该项目将开发新的产品和工艺，有助于减少加拿大鸡肉生产中AGP的使用。此外，先前的研究表明，在饲料中添加石榴酸有可能增加家禽产品的市场价值。此外，由于石榴酸在营养品（如抗癌成分），化妆品和油脂化学（如工业油和生物聚合物）中具有其他有价值的应用，通过发酵生产的高品质石榴酸也将有利于加拿大的生物技术产业。最后，拟议的研究将更好地了解与工业微生物中植物来源的不寻常脂肪酸生产相关的基本因素，以及在动物饲养中使用不寻常脂肪酸作为AGP替代品。

The Canadian poultry industry is moving away from the use of antibiotic growth promoters (AGP) in the production of broiler chickens and turkeys. Alternative products to AGP are critical to maintaining a viable and profitable poultry production system and ensuring a safe and healthy food product for consumers. Recent studies have indicated that an edible conjugated fatty acid, punicic acid, has strong anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory activity and thus could be a potential alternative to AGP. However, its major natural source (pomegranate seed oil) is approximately $25/kg (drum pricing), which makes it uneconomical for feeding broilers. The objectives of this project are to produce punicic acid in baker's yeast and evaluate its efficacy to promote broiler growth and performance. The project will develop novel products and processes that can contribute to the overall strategy to reduce AGP use in Canadian chicken production. Moreover, previous studies indicated supplementation of punicic acid in feed had the potential to increase the market value of poultry products. Furthermore, since punicic acid has other valuable applications in nutraceutical (e.g. anti-cancer components), cosmetic and oleo-chemistry (e.g. industrial oil and bio-polymer), high-quality punicic acid produced via fermentation will also benefit the biotechnology industry in Canada. Finally, the proposed research will provide a better understanding of the fundamental factors associated with the production of plant-sourced unusual fatty acids in industrial microorganisms and the use of unusual fatty acids as AGP alternatives in animal feeding.