Arsenic-Containing Long-Chain Fatty Acids in Cod-Liver Oil: A Result of Biosynthetic Infidelity?

摘要

Cod-liver oil, like other oils derived from marine fish, contains appreciable concentrations of lipid-soluble arsenic compounds. Despite extensive studies on arsenic in marine samples, the structures of these arsenolipids have remained unknown. We now report the isolation of six arsenolipids from cod-liver oil, and their identification as a series of novel arsenic-containing long-chain fatty acids (Figure 1). These arsenic compounds occur in cod liver alongside the usual long-chain fatty acids. Their presence raises questions about the fidelity of biosynthetic reactions and the consequences of consumption of arsenic-containing analogues of such important dietary components.