Differences in the regulation of the biosynthesis and esterification of 20- versus 22-carbon polynsaturated fatty acids

摘要

It is generally accepted that linoleate and linolenate are metabolized, respectively, to 20:4 #omega#6 and 20:5 #omega#3 in the endoplasmic reticulum via two position-specific acyl-CoA-dependent desaturases and a malonyl-CoA-dependent chain elongation step. It was not until recently that #DELTA#6 and #DELTA#5 desaturases were cloned and expressed in cells, thus conclusively demonstrating that two different position-specific desaturases are required for the synthesis of arachidonic acid and 20:5 #omega#3 [1-6].