The dietary requirements of infants
Claire Tuck in Complementary Feeding, 2022
The 18-carbon chain polyunsaturated fatty acids linoleic acid (omega-6) and alpha-linolenic acid (omega-3) are essential fatty acids, in that they cannot be synthesised by the body and must be obtained from the diet. Linoleic acid can be obtained from many plant, seed and nut oils such as corn, soybean, sesame and sunflower, while alpha-linolenic acid can be obtained from soybeans, walnuts, wheatgerm, rapeseed oil, linseeds and their oils. The longer carbon chain omega-3s, eicosapentaenoic acid (20 carbons) and docosahexaenoic acid (22 carbons), found in fatty fish and shellfish (such as herring, fresh tuna, salmon and mackerel) are seen as conditionally essential, since they can only be formed to a limited extent in the body from alpha-linolenic acid.63 Docosahexaenoic acid is important in the development of the brain and retina, and together with eicosapentaenoic acid, is important in the prevention of cardiovascular disease.63
Fat and Cholesterol
Maria A. Fiatarone Singh, John Sutton Chair in Exercise, Nutrition, and the Older Woman, 2000
Fatty acids can be classified as to whether or not they are essential for humans. Essential fatty acids are those that cannot be synthesized in the human body and, therefore, must be derived from the diet. Linoleic (18:2n-6) and linolenic (α-linolenic acid; 18:3n-3) acids are essential fatty acids. Essential fatty acids are important because they are used to synthesize regulatory compounds, for example, prostaglandins, thromboxanes, prostacyclins, and leukotrienes. Different forms of these compounds regulate a wide range of functions such as inflammation, platelet aggregation, blood vessel contractility, uterine contractions, and dermal and renal integrity. A clinical manifestation of essential fatty acid deficiency is dermatitis which responds to essential fatty acids. This clinical manifestation has been directly attributable to the need for linoleic acid to form part of the lipid bilayers (lamellae) that fill the intercellular space in the upper part of the epidermis (stratum corium). Other fatty acids, arachidonic (20:4n-6), eicosapentaenoic (20:5n-3), and docosahexaenoic (22:6n-3) acids, are metabolic products of linoleic and linolenic acids, and can partially substitute for these fatty acids in the diet.
Nutrition for health and sports performance
Nick Draper, Helen Marshall in Exercise Physiology, 2014
Fatty acids exist in saturated and unsaturated forms. Figure 2.11 shows the chemical structure of the saturated fat palmitic acid and the unsaturated fat linolenic acid. Palmitic acid, as the name suggests, is a major component of palm oil and coconut oil. It is one of the most common saturated fats found in plants and animals. Linolenic acid, or more correctly α-linolenic acid, is found in seed oils such as rapeseed, soybeans, flaxseed and kiwifruit seeds. Research indicates that consumption of α-linolenic acid is associated with decreased risk of cardiovascular disease. The saturation of a fatty acid refers to the number of hydrogen atoms attached to the carbon chain. Carbon makes four covalent bonds to share electrons. In a saturated fat the carbon atoms are saturated with hydrogen atoms, such that each carbon atom is attached to its neighbouring carbon atoms and two hydrogen atoms. It cannot hold any more hydrogen atoms and remain attached to the fatty acid chain, and is therefore a saturated fatty acid. In an unsaturated fatty acid one or more of the carbon atoms makes a double bond with a neighbouring carbon atom. This means that while the double carbon-bonded atoms maintain four covalent bonds for chemical stability it remains unsaturated with hydrogen atoms. In the example shown, α-linolenic acid has three unsaturated carbon atoms.
Production, purification and biochemical characterisation of a novel lipase from a newly identified lipolytic bacterium Staphylococcus caprae NCU S6
Published in Journal of Enzyme Inhibition and Medicinal Chemistry, 2021
Junxin Zhao, Maomao Ma, Zheling Zeng, Ping Yu, Deming Gong, Shuguang Deng
Among the tested natural oils, the canola oil was hydrolysed to a higher degree by SCNL at a high specific activity (220.00 U/mg). The canola oil contains less than 2% erucic acid and less than 30 mM glucosinolates, and has a relatively low level of saturated fat (≤7%) and a high content of polyunsaturated fats, such as linoleic acid and α-linolenic acid (formally called 9,12,15-all-cis-octadecatrienoic acid). α-linolenic acid is an unsaturated omega-3 fatty acid available in many plant oils. The activity of SCNL was strong for natural oils with medium-chain to long-chain fatty acids [C6:0–C16:0]. Among them, both olive oil (184.80 U/mg) and rice bran oil (176.69 U/mg) contain long unsaturated fatty acids, such as oleic acid and linoleic acid. These results were in accordance with a previous report14, indicating its preference to medium-chain fatty acids and long unsaturated fatty acids.
Chemical composition and insecticidal activities of the essential oils and various extracts of two Thymus species: Thymus cariensis and Thymus cilicicus
Published in Toxin Reviews, 2021
Selçuk Küçükaydın, Gülsen Tel-Çayan, Mehmet Emin Duru, Memiş Kesdek, Mehmet Öztürk
Linolenic and linoleic acids are defined as essential fatty acids implicated in human health promotion. Linolenic acid has been identified that as a potential nutraceutical to protect the brain from stroke, characterized by its pleiotropic effects in neuroprotection, neuroplasticity, and vasodilation of brain arteries (Blondeau 2015). In different studies, the highest amount of linolenic acid was detected in T. capitatus (29.6%), T. zygis (15.6%), T. pulegioides (27.6%), and T. fragrantissimus (36.2%), T. vulgaris (44.4%), T. kotschyanus var. glabrescens (53.5%), T. kotschyanus var. kotschyanus (44.6%), T. hausknechtii (46.8%), T. pubescens var. pubescens (40.7%), T. fallax (42.9%) (Tulukcu 2011, Tabti et al.2015, Afonso et al.2018, Cacan et al.2018). The obtained results are full agreement with other Thymus species.
Omega-3 fatty acids' supplementation in Alzheimer's disease: A systematic review
Published in Nutritional Neuroscience, 2018
Scheine Canhada, Kamila Castro, Ingrid Schweigert Perry, Vivian Cristine Luft
Evidence suggests that omega-3 fatty acids' modulate numerous molecular and cellular processes, which include brain and visual development, inflammatory reactions, thrombosis, and carcinogenesis.10 Omega-3 fatty acids are considered essential for the human body because we are unable to produce them, so they must be obtained from dietary sources.11,12 Among them, alpha-linolenic acid is present in flaxseed and canola oils, and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) are found in fatty fish such as salmon, trout, and tuna, and in fish-oil supplements.12 Observational studies have suggested that omega-3 fatty acids and its food sources are associated with lower incidences of AD and dementias in general.4,67–8 However, omega-3 fatty acids' role in AD treatment, when the disease already exists, is still controversial in the literature.
Related Knowledge Centers
- Ester
- Fatty Acid
- Linoleic Acid
- Triglyceride
- Octadecatrienoic Acid
- Cis–Trans Isomerism
- Α-Linolenic Acid
- Omega-3 Fatty Acid
- Gamma-Linolenic Acid
- Omega-6 Fatty Acid