Oil palm: GM drives value

Oil palm fruit produces two types of oil, palm oil and palm kernel oil, extracted from the mesocarp and kernel, respectively. The palm oil and palm kernel oil could be value-added through genetic engineering. Research to genetically engineer oil palm was initiated at the Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB) 20 years ago. The first successful production of transgenic oil palm was obtained in 1997. This was concurrently followed by efforts to isolate useful genes and tissue-specific promoters from oil palm. Among the targets for genetic engineering of oil palm are increasing oleic acid, stearic acid, lycopene (carotenoid), palmitoleic acid, ricinoleic acid and biodegradable plastics. Currently production of transgenic palms for most of the above target transgenic has been achieved, some transferred to soil in contained screen house. Commercial planting of genetically modified (GM) oil palm is targeted in 2020. In 100 years, GM palms would be a common landscape in Malaysia. Palm oil with high oleic acid content would be readily available as feedstock for the oleochemical industry besides better access to the liquid oil market. The saturated stearic acid-enriched palm oil on the other hand has numerous applications such as cocoa butter substitute and personal care products. Lycopene (carotenoid) is antioxidant and anticancer, which would be available in abundant compared with current limited supply from tomato. Likewise, vitamin E is also antioxidant, suppresses the elevation of the cholesterol level in blood and prevents aggregation of platelets in blood. Palmitoleic acid has been shown to have antithrombotic, which helps in preventing stroke. Ricinoleic acid has medium to high value industrial uses in products ranging from cosmetics, pharmaceutical to polymers and high grade lubricant. Biodegradable plastic is a very high value-added product for medical uses (heart valves, surgery stitches) in addition to environmental f riendly. Proteins in kernel could be enriched and utilized for phamarceutical products such as vaccines and antibodies. The value-added products will benefit many industries such as oleochemical, lubricants, cosmetics, food and medical. Thus, GM drives value for the betterment of the future generation.