Essential fatty acids

Essential fatty acid
    • Human body is unable to synthesise all fatty acids found in the body .those fatty acids that are not synthesised in the body but required for normal body growth and maintenance are called as essential fatty acids. The longer chain fatty acids can be synthesised by the body from dietary linoleic and γ-linolenic acids. Arachidonic acid is essential but it can be synthesised by the body from linolenic acid. It is also present in the meat. Linoleic acid is grouped under n-6 family because the 6th carbon from methyl end possesses the double bond. Other fatty acids that are synthesised in the body from linoleic acid such as γ linolenic and arachidonic acids also belong to n-6 family
    • α-Linolenic acid belongs to n-3 family and is an essential fatty acid. The third carbon from the methyl end possess the double bond .The organs and tissues that perform the more routine and generalized functions such as adipose tissue, liver, muscle, kidney and the reproductive organs tend to have membranes in which n-6 family of polyunsaturated fatty acids predominate. Nervous tissue and retina of the eye have a larger proportion of the longer chain acids with 5 or 6 double bonds predominantly of the n-3 family
    • Fish oils and spirulina are rich in fatty acids of n-3 family. Arachidonic acid serves as precursor for the synthesis of prostaglandins,thrombaxanes and prostacyclins. These fatty acid derivatives are called as 'eicosanoid' meaning 20 ºC. compounds. The main source of these eicosanoids are the membrane phospholipids. from which they are released by the action of phospholipase-A.

    • Phosphatidyl inositol which contains a high concentration of arachidonic acid in carbon-2 of glycerol provides a major store of eicosanoid precursors. Phosphatidyl inositol is an important constituent of cell membrane phospholipids; upon stimulation by a suitable animal hormone it is cleaved into diacylglycerol and inositol phosphate, both of which act as internal signals or second messengers.

Last modified: Tuesday, 27 March 2012, 7:14 PM