Ameri-Can Pedigreed Seed Co., a wholly owned subsidiary ofCalgene Inc., has requested U.S. Department of Agricultureapproval for field trials of genetically engineered wintercanola that produces a modified vegetable oil.

The canola contains a gene for the stearoyl-ACP desaturaseenzyme, which leads the plants to produce increased levels ofstearic acid. The gene was isolated from a non-canola oilseedplant and incorporated into canola using an Agrobacteriumtumefasciens vector.

The high-stearate characteristic will allow the oil to be usedin an all-natural margarine that does not requirehydrogenation. Margarine now must be partially hydrogenatedto convert liquid oil into a spreadable product.

Oil from the genetically engineered plants could be on themarket in as little as two years, said Roger Salquist, chiefexecutive officer of Davis, Calif.-based Calgene. AlthoughCalgene (NASDAQ:CGNE) would have to request Food and DrugAdministration approval, Salquist said, the plants containnothing novel.

A second use for high-stearate oil could be as an equivalentfor cocoa butter, which is expensive and in limited supply, saidSalquist.

Several acres of canola will be planted at each of three sitesin Georgia in November. Ameri-Can is headquartered inMemphis, Tenn.-- Karen Bernstein

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