Method For The Production Of .gamma.-linolenic Acid And/or Stearidonic Acid In Transgenic Brassicaceae And Linaceae (Patent CA 2625505 C)

The invention relates to the production of .gamma.-linolenic acid (18:3 .DELTA.6,9,12) or stearidonic acid (18:4 .DELTA.6,9,12,15) or .gamma.-linolenic acid (18:3.DELTA.6,9,12) and stearidonic acid (18:4 .DELTA.6,9,12,15) in transgenic plants of the brassicaceae family, said transgenic plants containing at least 10 percent by weight of oleic acid relative to the total fatty acid concentration and being provided with an increased .DELTA.-6-C18 fatty acid concentration as a result of the activity of the .DELTA.-6 desaturases used in the method. The invention also relates to novel nucleic acid sequences coding for the .DELTA.-6 desaturases used in the method, gene constructs containing said nucleic acid sequences, a vector and transgenic plants containing at least one nucleic acid sequence or a gene construct.