The effect of glycerol 3-phosphate on fatty acid synthesis.

The synthesis de no2ro of fatty acids by particle-free cell extracts is inhibited by long chain fatty acyl coenzyme A derivatives such as palmityl coenzyme A (l-5). On the other hand, fatty acid synthesis is stimulated by the addition of microsomes (6-9). The enzymes that transfer long chain fatty acyl groups from coenzyme A to glycerol S-phosphate and its derivatives are also located in the microsomes (10-14). These observations suggest that the microsomal stimulation of fatty acid synthesis may be caused at least in part by transfer of acyl groups from long chain fatty acyl coenzyme A to glycerol 3-phosphate. The present report describes the effect of glycerol 3-phosphate on the synthesis of fatty acids. A preliminary account of this work has appeared (15).