My watch list

Home
Encyclopedia
Polyunsaturated_fatty_acid

Polyunsaturated fatty acid

The polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are fatty acids which contains more than one double bond.

Additional recommended knowledge

Essential Laboratory Skills Guide

Recognize and detect the effects of electrostatic charges on your balance

What is the Sensitivity of my Balance?

1 Methylene Interrupted Polyenes
2 Conjugated fatty acids
3 Other Polyunsaturates
4 Function and effects
5 See also
6 References
- 6.1 Citations
- 6.2 General References

Methylene Interrupted Polyenes

These fatty acids have 2 or more cis double bonds which are separated from each other by a single methylene group. (This form is also sometimes called a divinylmethane pattern.) ^[1]

Methylene- interrupted double bonds
-C-C=C-C-C=C-

The essential fatty acids comprise the omega-3 and -6 methylene-interrupted fatty acids. See more at Essential fatty acids—Nomenclature

Omega-3

Omega-3 fatty acids
Common name	Lipid name	Chemical name
	16:3 (n-3)	all-cis 7,10,13-hexadecatrienoic acid
Alpha-linolenic acid (ALA)	18:3 (n-3)	all-cis-9,12,15-octadecatrienoic acid
Stearidonic acid	18:4 (n-3)	all-cis-6,9,12,15,-octadecatetraenoic acid
Eicosatetraenoic acid	20:4 (n-3)	all-cis-8,11,14,17-eicosatetraenoic acid
Eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA)	20:5 (n-3)	all-cis-5,8,11,14,17-eicosapentaenoic acid
Docosapentaenoic acid (DPA, Clupanodonic acid)	22:5 (n-3)	all-cis-7,10,13,16,19-docosapentaenoic
Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)	22:6 (n-3)	all-cis-4,7,10,13,16,19-docosahexaenoic acid
	24:5 (n-3)	all-cis-4,7,10,13,16,19-docosahexaenoic acid
Nisinic acid	24:6 (n-3)	all-cis-6,9,12,15,18,21-tetracosenoic acid

Omega-6

Omega-6 fatty acids
Common name	Lipid name	Chemical name
Linoleic acid	18:2 (n-6)	all-cis-9,12-octadecadienoic acid
Gamma-linolenic acid (GLA)	18:3 (n-6)	all-cis-6,9,12-octadecatrienoic acid
Eicosadienoic acid	20:2 (n-6)	all-cis-11,14-eicosadienoic acid
Dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid (DGLA)	20:3 (n-6)	all-cis-8,11,14-eicosatrienoic acid
Arachidonic acid (AA)	20:4 (n-6)	all-cis-5,8,11,14-eicosatetraenoic acid
Docosadienoic acid	22:2 (n-6)	all-cis-13,16-docosadienoic acid
Adrenic acid	22:4 (n-6)	all-cis-7,10,13,16-docosatetraenoic acid
Docosapentaenoic acid (Osbond acid)	22:5 (n-6)	all-cis-4,7,10,13,16-docosapentaenoic acid

Omega-9

Omega-9 fatty acids, mono- and polysaturated
Common name	Lipid name	Chemical name
Oleic acid^†	18:1 (n-9)	cis-9-octadecenoic acid
Eicosenoic acid^†	20:1 (n-9)	cis-11-eicosenoic acid
Mead acid	20:3 (n-9)	all-cis-5,8,11-eicosatrienoic acid
Erucic acid^†	22:1 (n-9)	cis-13-docosenoic acid
Nervonic acid^†	24:1 (n-9)	cis-15-tetracosenoic acid
^†Monounsaturated

Conjugated fatty acids

It has been suggested that Conjugated fatty acid be merged into this article or section. (Discuss)

Conjugated double bonds
-C=C-C=C-

Conjugated fatty acids have two or more conjugated double bonds
Common name	Lipid name	Chemical name
Conjugated Linoleic Acids (two conjugated double bonds)
Rumenic acid	18:2 (n-7)	9Z,11E-octadeca-9,11-dienoic acid
	18:2 (n-6)	10E,12Z-octadeca-9,11-dienoic acid
Conjugated Linolenic Acids (three conjugated double bonds)
α-Calendic acid	18:3 (n-6)	8E,10E,12Z-octadecatrienoic acid
β-Calendic acid	18:3 (n-6)	8E,10E,12E-octadecatrienoic acid
Jacaric acid	18:3 (n-6)	8E,10Z,12E-octadecatrienoic acid
α-Eleostearic acid	18:3 (n-5)	9E,11E,13Z-octadeca-9,11,13-trienoic acid
β-Eleostearic acid	18:3 (n-5)	9E,11E,13E-octadeca-9,11,13-trienoic acid
Catalpic acid	18:3 (n-5)	9Z,11Z,13E-octadeca-9,11,13-trienoic acid
Punicic acid	18:3 (n-5)	9E,11Z,13E-octadeca-9,11,13-trienoic acid
Other
Rumelenic acid	18:3 (n-3)	9E,11Z,15E-octadeca-9,11,15-trienoic acid
α-Parinaric acid	18:4 (n-3)	9E,11Z,13Z,15E-octadeca-9,11,13,15-trienoic acid
β-Parinaric acid	18:4 (n-3)	all trans-octadeca-9,11,13,15-trienoic acid
Bosseopentaenoic acid	20:5 (n-6)	5Z,8Z,10E,12E,14Z-eicosanoic acid

Other Polyunsaturates

Common name	Lipid name	Chemical name
Pinolenic acid	18:3 (n-6)	(5Z,9Z,12Z)-octadeca-5,9,12-trienoic acid
Podocarpic acid	20:3 (n-6)	(5Z,11Z,14Z)-eicosa-5,11,14-trienoic acid

Function and effects

The biological effects of the ω-3 and ω-6 fatty acids are largely mediated by their mutual interactions, see Essential fatty acid interactions for detail.

References

Citations

^ Baggott, James (1997). The divinylmethane pattern in fatty acids. Salt Lake City, UT: Knowledge Weavers.

General References

Cyberlipid. Polyenoic Fatty Acids. Retrieved on 2007-01-17.

Gunstone, Frank D. Lipid Glossary 2. Retrieved on 2007-01-17.

Adlof, R. O. and Gunstone, F. D. (2003-9-17). Common (non-systematic) Names for Fatty Acids. Retrieved on 2007-01-24.

Heinz (1983). "Similarities and Differences in Lipid Metabolism of Chloroplasts Isolated from 18:3 and 16:3 Plants". Plant Physiol 72 (2): 273-279. PMID 16662992.

Categories: Fatty acids | Chemical structures | Nutrients

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Polyunsaturated_fatty_acid". A list of authors is available in Wikipedia.

Topics A-Z

All topics