Fatty acid
hideIn chemistry, especially biochemistry, a fatty acid is a carboxylic acid often with a long unbranched aliphatic tail (chain), which is either saturated or unsaturated. Carboxylic acids as short as butyric acid (4 carbon atoms) are considered to be fatty acids, whereas fatty acids derived from natural fats and oils may be assumed to have at least eight carbon atoms, caprylic acid (octanoic acid), for example. The most abundant natural fatty acids have an even number of carbon atoms because their biosynthesis involves acetyl-CoA, a coenzyme carrying a two-carbon-atom group (see fatty acid synthesis).
Fatty acids are produced by the hydrolysis of the ester linkages in a fat or biological oil (both of which are triglycerides), with the removal of glycerol. See oleochemicals.
Fatty acids are aliphatic monocarboxylic acids derived from, or contained in esterified form in, an animal or vegetable fat, oil, or wax. Natural fatty acids commonly have a chain of four to 28 carbons (usually unbranched and even numbered), which may be saturated or unsaturated. By extension, the term is sometimes used to embrace all acyclic aliphatic carboxylic acids. This would include acetic acid, which is not usually considered a fatty acid because it is so short that the triglyceride triacetin made from it is substantially miscible with water and is thus not a lipid.
The blend of fatty acids exuded by mammalian skin, together with lactic acid and pyruvic acid, are probably as distinctive as fingerprints, and enable dogs to differentiate between various people. A team from Yale University have in 2009 developed the electronic equivalent of a dog's sense of smell.
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News tagged with fatty acids
Roe of marine animals is best natural source of omega-3
Dec 11, 2009 |
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The roe of hake, lumpsucker and salmon is the best dietary source of Omega 3, according to a study carried out by researchers at the University of Almería (UAL). The scientists analysed the eggs, or ...
Nanoparticle protects oil in foods from oxidation, spoilage
Nanotechnology / Nanomaterials
Dec 08, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Using a nanoparticle from corn, a Purdue University scientist has found a way to lengthen the shelf life of many food products and sustain their health benefits.
Omega-3 fatty acids may reduce risk of colon cancer
Dec 08, 2009 |
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Long-chain omega-3 fatty acids, primarily found in fish and seafood, may have a role in colorectal cancer prevention, according to results presented at the American Association for Cancer Research Frontiers in Cancer Prevention ...
Fish food fight: Fish don't eat trees after all, says new study
Nov 24, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- What constitutes fish food is a matter of debate. A high-profile study a few years ago suggested that fish get almost 50 percent of their carbon from trees and leaves, evidence for a very ...
Early protein processes crucial to formation and layering of myelin membrane
Nov 24, 2009 |
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New findings from an international team of researchers probing the nerve-insulating myelin sheath were bolstered by the work of Boston College biologists, who used x-rays to uncover how mutations affect the structure of myelin, ...
Wolves, moose and biodiversity: An unexpected connection
Nov 02, 2009 |
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Moose eat plants; wolves kill moose. What difference does this classic predator-prey interaction make to biodiversity?
How fish is cooked affects heart-health benefits of omega-3 fatty acids
Nov 17, 2009 |
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If you eat fish to gain the heart-health benefits of its omega-3 fatty acids, baked or boiled fish is better than fried, salted or dried, according to research presented at the American Heart Association's Scientific Sessions ...
Ice cream may target the brain before your hips, study suggests
Sep 14, 2009 |
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Blame your brain for sabotaging your efforts to get back on track after splurging on an extra scoop of ice cream or that second burger during Friday night's football game.
Half of the fish consumed globally is now raised on farms, study finds
Sep 07, 2009 |
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Aquaculture, once a fledgling industry, now accounts for 50 percent of the fish consumed globally, according to a new report by an international team of researchers. And while the industry is more efficient ...
Magnetic nanoparticles to simultaneously diagnose, monitor and treat
Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine
Nov 06, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Whether it's magnetic nanoparticles (mNPs) giving an army of 'therapeutically armed' white blood cells direction to invade a deadly tumour's territory, or the use of mNPs to target specific nerve channels ...
Omega fatty acid balance can alter immunity and gene expression
May 29, 2009 |
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Using a controlled diet study with human volunteers, researchers may have teased out a biological basis for the increased inflammation observed due to humans' shift in their consumption of omega fatty acids.
Well-known enzyme is unexpected contributor to brain growth
Medicine & Health / Neuroscience
Mar 12, 2009 |
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An enzyme researchers have studied for years because of its potential connections to cancer, diabetes, heart disease, hypertension and stroke, appears to have yet another major role to play: helping create and maintain the ...
How Social Insects Recognize Dead Nestmates
May 05, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- When an ant dies in an ant nest or near one, its body is quickly picked up by living ants and removed from the colony, thus limiting the risk of colony infection by pathogens from the corpse.
Metobolomics uncovers key indicators of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
Nov 24, 2009 |
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A recent metobolomics study by researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center in Richmond found that impaired peroxisomal oxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) is associated with the progression ...
Biologists discover 'death stench' is a universal ancient warning signal
Sep 11, 2009 |
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The smell of recent death or injury that repels living relatives of insects has been identified as a truly ancient signal that functions to avoid disease or predators, biologists have discovered.
