Mammalian fatty acid elongases.

ABSTRACT: Very long chain fatty acids confer functional diversity on cells by variations in their chain length and degree of unsaturation. Microsomal fatty acid elongation represents the major pathway for determining the chain length of saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated fatty acids in cellular lipids. The overall reaction for fatty acid elongation involves four enzymes and utilizes malonyl CoA, NADPH, and fatty acyl CoA as substrates. While the fundamental pathway and its requirements have been known for many years, recent advances have revealed a family of enzymes involved in the first step of the reaction, i.e., the condensation reaction. Seven fatty acid elongase subtypes (Elovl #1-7) have been identified in the mouse, rat, and human genomes. These enzymes determine the rate of over

SUBMITTER: Jump DB 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2764369 | biostudies-literature | 2009

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature