OPTIMIZATION OF AN AGRICULTURAL BASED-APPROACH FOR INCREASING STEARIDONIC ACID (SDA) ACCUMULATION IN THE PLANT BUGLOSSOIDES ARVENSIS USING CO-INOCULATION WITH PSEUDOMONAS SP. LBUM677

The objective of this project is to optimize a novel agricultural-based approach for producing high levels of stearidonic acid (SDA)-containing seed oil in the plant Buglossoides arvensis using co-cultivation with Pseudomonas p. LBUM677. Production of seed oil enriched in SDA, a dietary product possessing proven health benefits, is promising for use as animal and human diet supplements. SDA has been found in plant species and cultivars belonging to the Boraginaceae family that have significant potential for development into commercially viable crops. Production of SDA will be achieved through the use of proprietary plant cultivars provided by a commercial partner, Nature’s Crops International (NCI), in conjunction with proprietary bacterial microbial inoculants already available in our laboratory. Preliminary results have shown increased SDA yields per plant, and ultimately per hectare, using co-inoculation strategies with selected microbial inoculants. Indeed, the co-culture of plants with

selected microbial inoculants, such as plant-growth promoting rhizobacteria such as…………………………..

Faculty Supervisor:

Martin Filion

Student:

Partner:

Nature's Crops International

Discipline:

Physics

Sector:

Manufacturing

University:

Université de Moncton