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Fatty Acids Definition

Fatty acids are any group of long-chain hydrocarbons produced from the breakdown of lipids, with a carboxylic acid at the start and a methyl end (through hydrolysis). The building blocks of fats, oils, and waxes are fatty acids.

What are Fatty Acids?

It refers to any hydrocarbon chain having a single carboxylic group and an aliphatic tail. It’s made when fats (typically triglycerides or phospholipids) are broken down in a process called hydrolysis. Fatty acids are a lipid subclass. Glycerol, glycerophospholipid, sphingolipid, sterol lipid, and prenol lipid are some of the other primary kinds of lipids. Lipids are organic molecules that are soluble in nonpolar but not polar solvents (e.g., ether and water respectively).

Fatty Acids Structure

R-COOH can be used to indicate a fatty acid, with R denoting the aliphatic moiety and COOH denoting the carboxylic group (making the molecule an acid). The general formula is CnH2n+1COOH. The number of carbons in almost all natural fatty acids is even. This is because fatty acids are made by adding two carbons to malonyl-CoA each time.

Fatty Acids Types

Depending on the type of the covalent link, fatty acids are divided into two groups: (1) unsaturated fatty acids and (2) saturated fatty acids. Unsaturated fatty acids are those with one or more double bonds, allowing them to absorb extra hydrogen atoms.

Monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats are two types of monounsaturated fats. Monounsaturated fatty acids, polyunsaturated fatty acids, omega fatty acids, and other unsaturated fats are examples. Saturated fatty acids are those that have no unsaturated carbon-carbon bonds.

Lauric acid, palmitic acid, and other similar acids are examples. The length of the chain is another technique to categorize fatty acids. A short-chain fatty acid is one having an aliphatic tail of five or fewer carbons. A medium-chain fatty acid is one with a 6 to 12 carbon aliphatic tail. A fatty acid with a 13 to 21 carbon aliphatic tail is known as a long-chain fatty acid.

The term “extremely long chain fatty acid” refers to a fatty acid having an aliphatic tail of 22 or more carbons. Essential fatty acids are a kind of fatty acid that is unique. They’re named that since we can’t make them ourselves and have to get them from our food. Linoleic acid and alpha-linolenic acid (ALA), which are found in plant oils, are examples of important fatty acids.

Biosynthesis of Fatty Acids

Fatty acids are produced in the cytoplasm of the cell. Fatty acid production occurs in the liver and adipose tissue of mammals. During breastfeeding, it can also be found in the mammary glands. The process starts with the cytosol’s conversion of glucose to pyruvate (through glycolysis).

Pyruvate is metabolized to acetyl CoA in the mitochondrion. When acetyl CoA is activated, it enters the citric acid cycle and is converted to citrate by interacting with oxaloacetate, displacing coenzyme A.

Citrate exits the citric acid cycle and the mitochondrion during fatty acid synthesis. The enzyme ATP citrate lyase cleaves it into acetyl-CoA and oxaloacetate once it reaches the cytosol. (For the citric acid cycle, oxaloacetate returns to the mitochondrion.).

The enzyme acteyl CoA carboxylase converts acetyl CoA in the cytosol to malonyl-CoA by carboxylation. In fatty acid biosynthesis, this phase is known as the committed step. Two carbons are added to the fatty acid chain at a time. The addition of three fatty acids to one glycerol molecule is nearly invariably the end result of fatty acid synthesis, resulting in triglyceride” (fat).

Lipolysis can break down triglycerides to release fatty acids (also known as “free fatty acids”). The available plasma albumin transports fatty acids into the circulation. They are taken in by cells and processed in the mitochondrion’s citric acid cycle.

When fatty acids are taken up by cells for beta-oxidation and ultimately combustion via the citric acid cycle, they are destroyed. CO2 and water are produced as a result of the operation.

Fatty Acids Function

Triglycerides contain a high concentration of fatty acids (fats). Triglycerides are a kind of biomolecule that stores chemical energy that may be used to power metabolic activities like muscle contraction. They are also an important structural component of cell and organelle membranes in biology.


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Fatty Acids Citations
  • Essential Fatty Acid Requirements and Intravenous Lipid Emulsions. JPEN J Parenter Enteral Nutr . 2019 Aug;43(6):697-707.
  • Fatty Acid Desaturases, Polyunsaturated Fatty Acid Regulation, and Biotechnological Advances. Nutrients . 2016 Jan 4;8(1):23.
  • Cellular fatty acid metabolism and cancer. Cell Metab . 2013 Aug 6;18(2):153-61.
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Table of Contents

Fatty Acids Definition

They comprise storage lipids that are solid at room temperature and are found in animal tissues. Fat is the type of lipid known as triglycerides. Lipids and fats do not refer to the same organic compound. Lipids comprise a waxy or fatty compound that is not soluble in polar solvents like water but rather is readily soluble in a nonpolar solvent like ether.

Lipids are a broad category and comprise of different types like glycerol, sphingolipid, lipid, fatty acids, glycerophospholipid, and sterol lipids. Fats are also one category of lipids. Not all lipids are fats, while all fats are lipids. For instance, oil is a lipid but is not fat as it is not solid at room temperature. This is due to its constitution as it consists of unsaturated short fatty acid chains.

What are Fatty Acids?

Fatty acid monomers make up fats along with glycerol. A fatty acid is described as a long hydrocarbon chain that has an aliphatic tail and a carboxylic group. Due to its structure fats are categorized under hydrocarbons. As fats are also lipids they are only soluble in organic solvents as they are hydrophobic.

Fatty Acid, What are Fatty Acids,

Fat can be categorized based on covalent bonds into 2: saturated fatty acids and unsaturated fatty acids. The fatty acid part of this organic molecule is saturated that does not contain unsaturated bonds. Due to this, they are unable to absorb any more hydrogen atoms.

Fats usually consist of long-chain saturated hydrocarbon chains due to which they are solid at room temperature. Van der Waals forces are responsible for intermolecular attractions in the long saturated fatty acids. Due to these attractions they are held closely in a packed arrangement and are solid at room temperature.

The fatty acid chain varies in terms of length in a fat molecule. Based on this they can be classified into short-chain fatty acids and long-chain fatty acids. Short-chain fatty acids consist of 5 or fewer carbons in their aliphatic tail, while long-chain fatty acids comprise 13-21 carbons in their aliphatic tail.

The case of medium-chain fatty acids has an aliphatic tail of 6-12 carbons. Glycerated fatty acid chains comprise fat molecules of varying lengths. Dietary fats comprise fatty chains of medium to the longer length. For example, Lard is a long hydrocarbon organic molecule where the chain is 17 carbons long.

Fatty Acids Examples

Phospholipids, cholesterol, and triglycerides are examples of fats. Cholesterol forms a component of the cell membrane and affects the fluidity of the membrane. It is a modified steroid biosynthesized in animal cells. It is due to the structural integrity provided by cholesterol that animal cells do not require a cell wall. As they help to alter the fluidity, they make animal cells more flexible.

Phospholipids are structural components of a biological membrane that form a lipid bilayer. They are comprised of glycerol bound to a phosphate group and 2 fatty acid chains. For example, sphingomyelins, phosphatidylethanolamine, lecithin, and phosphatidylinositol are some examples of phospholipids.

Triglycerides are formed by 3 fatty acids attached to a glycerol molecule via ester bonds. Structurally this resembles the E letter. They provide sources of energy and are reserved in adipose tissues, they are also found in heart muscle and bloodstream.

Essential fatty acids (EFAs) are crucial as they need to be ingested in diet and cannot be synthesized in the body. For example, dietary fats. Omega-3 fatty acid alpha-linolenic acid and omega-6 fatty acid linoleic acid are important EFAs.

Fatty acids are components of fat and form them through dehydration synthesis with the help of ester bonds. Fatty acids are esters as the process involved is esterification. The simplest fatty acids Triglyceride forms when the –OH group of the glycerol attaches with three chains of fatty acid and there is the release of water in the process.

Fats after being ingested are broken down into glycerol and fatty acids through hydrolysis. The degradation of dietary fats occurs in presence of the enzyme lipases that are produced pancreas, in humans.

Biological Importance of Fatty Acids

Fats on oxidation release an enormous amount of energy and is thus an important energy source that can be acquired from the diet. Lipids EFAs, can not be synthesized in the body and are derived from the diet. Therefore, fats are both an important energy source and an essential nutrient.

They contain double the energy of carbohydrates and are stored as reserves in adipose tissues. It is also more energy-dense than carbohydrates. Adipose tissue provides insulation that helps in temperature regulation and also acts as a cushion protecting against any trauma.

The skeletal and heart muscles derive their energy from fats releasing fatty acids and glycerol. Glycerol is further processed and converted into glucose in the liver. The adipose tissue containing stored fats provides cushion and insulation.


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