Abstract: Seed oils of non-traditional oil crop plants contain special fatty acids with conjugated double bond systems, acetylenic ( triple ) bonds, or have additional functional moieties, such as hydroxyl or epoxy groups, which have potential uses as industrial raw materials . The expression of the genes which are related to the biosynthesis of these special fatty acids in traditional oilseed crops could modify the seed oils to serve as renewable alternatives to traditional petrochemicals, including cosmetic, detergents , surfactants, lubricants, nylon , coatings , inks , sealants , emulsifiers , encapsulants, plastic films, wax and biodiesel . The progress on the genetic modification of seed oils which aimed to produce industrial raw materials is reviewed in the present paper.

Key words: Genetic engineering