My watch list
my.chemeurope.com  
Login  

Myristic acid



Myristic acid[1]
IUPAC name tetradecanoic acid
Identifiers
CAS number 544-63-8
PubChem 11005
SMILES CCCCCCCCCCCCCC(=O)O
Properties
Molecular formula C14H28O2
Molar mass 228.37092
Density 0.8622 g/cm3
Melting point

58.8 °C

Boiling point

250.5 °C at 100 mmHg

Except where noted otherwise, data are given for
materials in their standard state
(at 25 °C, 100 kPa)

Infobox disclaimer and references

Myristic acid, also called tetradecanoic acid, is a common saturated fatty acid with the molecular formula CH3(CH2)12COOH. A myristate is a salt or ester of myristic acid.

Myristic acid is named after the nutmeg (Myristica fragrans). Nutmeg butter is 75% trimyristin, the triglyceride of myristic acid. Besides nutmeg, myristic acid is also found in palm oil, butter fat and spermacetin, the crystallized fraction of oil from the sperm whale.

Myristic acid is also commonly added co-translationally to the penultimate, nitrogen terminus, glycine in receptor-associated kinases to confer the membrane localisation of the enzyme. The myristic acid has a sufficiently high hydrophobicity to become incorporated into the fatty acyl core of the phospholipid bilayer of the plasma membrane of the eukaryotic cell. In this way, myristic acid acts as a lipid anchor in biomembranes.

The ester isopropyl myristate is used in cosmetic and topical medicinal preparations where good absorption through the skin is desired.

Reduction of myristic acid yields myristyl alcohol.

References

  1. ^ Merck Index, 11th Edition, 6246
 
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Myristic_acid". A list of authors is available in Wikipedia.
Your browser is not current. Microsoft Internet Explorer 6.0 does not support some functions on Chemie.DE