Distribution of polyunsaturated fatty acids in red algae of the genus Gracilaria, a promising source of prostaglandins

The fatty acid (FA) composition and the content of the prostaglandin PGE(2) were determined in the red algae Gracilaria vermiculophylla and G. austramaritima from Peter the Great Bay (Sea of Japan), as well as in G. tenuistupitata, G. hangii, and G. bailiniae from lagoons in southern Vietnam (in the South China Sea). Polyunsaturated FA (PUFA) comprised 49-56% of the total FAs in algae from the Sea of Japan, while in algae from the South China Sea their share was 20% at most. The content of arachidonic acid (20:4n-6) in the total FAs of G. vermiculophylla was as high as 45.4%, while the level of 20:4n-6 in Gracilaria from coastal waters of Vietnam did not exceed 12.5%. G. austramaritima stood out for its high content of eicosapentaenoic acid 20:5n-3 (33.5%). The ratios of 20:4n-6/20:5n-3 in G. vermiculophylla, G. austramaritima, G. tenuistupitata, G. changii, and G. bailiniae were 10.6, 0.3, 3.9, 4.0, and 1.5, respectively. The content of PGE(2) was the highest (286 mu g/g dry weight) in G. vermiculophylla from the Sea of Japan and did not exceed 20 mu g/g dry weights in other Gracilaria species. This study showed that it is possible to introduce G. vermiculophylla from the Sea of Japan into the mariculture of northern Vietnam. In the experiment, during 3 weeks of cultivation, the biomass of introduced Gracilaria increased 1.2-1.3 times in a sea lagoon in Vietnam and 1.5-2 times in an aquarium; the algal growth rates were 1.57 +/- 0.21% per day. In cultivated Gracilaria, the level of 20:4n-6 decreased to 5.9% (20:4n-6/20:5n-3 = 2.3) and the level of PGE(2) decreased to 12 mu g/g in dry weight. The PUFA compositions of G. vermiculophylla from various natural populations differed insignificantly; however, the stress caused by introduction led to a sharp reduction in the content of 20:4n-6, which was probably connected with a decreased biosynthesis rate of PUFAs of the n-6 series. At the same time, approximately equal amounts of PGE(2) methyl ester were extracted from natural and cultivated G. vermiculophylla after treatment by a method proposed for obtaining prostaglandins. Thus, the cultivation conditions evidently did not influence the prostaglandin biosynthesis enzyme complex in G. vermiculophylla; this species, when grown in mariculture, can be used as a source of prostaglandins.