Recent studies have clearly shown the importance of polyunsaturated fatty acids (as essential fatty acids) and their nutritional value for human health. In this review, various sources, nutritional properties, and metabolism routes of long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA) are introduced. Since the conversion efficiency of linoleic acid (LA) to arachidonic acid (AA) and also α-linolen...

Fatty acid patterns of the serum lipids were measured in 17 children with Reye's syndrome (RS). Serial measurements of total serum free fatty acids (FFA) showed that levels were increased during RS and, after recovery, were significantly lower in the patients who survived. Fatty acid patterns of serum FFA, triglycerides, and phospholipids in patients with RS were significantly different from th...

Long chain polyunsaturated fatty acids are essential nutrients for a healthy diet. The different kinds consumed by the mother during gestation and lactation may influence pregnancy, fetal and also neonatal outcome. The amount of fatty acids transferred from mother to fetus depends not only on maternal metabolism but also on placental function, i.e. by the uptake, metabolism and then transfer of...

Background: Fatty acids are known to be critically important in multiple biological functions. Phospholipid fatty acids of follicular fluid, an important microenvironment for the development of oocytes, may contribute to the women’s fertility and the efficacy of assisted reproduction techniques. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of fatty acid composition of follicular fluid ph...

Fatty acids can be divided into four general categories: saturated, monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, and trans fats. Saturated fatty acids and trans fats are associated with an increased risk of coronary heart disease. Monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids are associated with a decreased risk of coronary heart disease, although these associations are not uniformly support...

The pine nuts, as the most expensive ones, are a source of healthy oil. Accordingly, the hypothesis was genetic differences of pine species (Pinus spp.) affect their nut oil content and fatty acid phytovariability. A completely randomized design experiment with three replicates was done in Isfahan Flower Garden, Iran, using four pine species of chir pine (Pinus longifolia<...

The n-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid, arachidonic acid, is a precursor of prostaglandins, leukotrienes and related compounds that have important roles as mediators and regulators of inflammation. Consuming increased amounts of long chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (found in oily fish and fish oils) results in a partial replacement of the arachidonic acid in cell membranes by eicosapentaenoic...

BACKGROUND Little is known about the relation of the dietary intake of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, ie, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) from fatty fish and alpha-linolenic acid from vegetable oils, with ischemic heart disease among older adults. OBJECTIVE We investigated the associations of plasma phospholipid concentrations of DHA, EPA, and alpha-linolenic acid...

Background: Little is known about the relation of the dietary intake of n 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids, ie, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) from fatty fish and -linolenic acid from vegetable oils, with ischemic heart disease among older adults. Objective: We investigated the associations of plasma phospholipid concentrations of DHA, EPA, and -linolenic acid as biomar...

Enzymes that lengthen the carbon chain of polyunsaturated fatty acids are key to the biosynthesis of the highly unsaturated fatty acids, arachidonic, eicosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids from linoleic and alpha-linolenic acids. A Mortierella alpina cDNA polyunsaturated fatty acid elongase sequence identified mammalian, amphibian, zebrafish and insect expressed sequence tags (ESTs) in GenB...