Professor The University of Texas At Austin Austin, TX, United States
Abstract: “Scientific revolutions are more often driven by new tools than by new concepts. The effect of a concept-driven revolution is to explain old things in new ways. The effects of a tool driven revolution is to discover new things that have to be explained.” Freeman Dyson, 1993
While 5 nucleotides suffice as building blocks for all nucleic acid polymers, and 21 amino acids suffice to make all proteins, modern tools tell us that biology makes hundreds of fatty acids as building blocks of glycerolipids that are required for functions of highly differentiated tissues. Similar diversity is apparent among single cellular organisms specialized for specific niches.
A specific molecular biology evolved in heterotrophs (non-photosynthetic organisms) to synthesize and/or adjust the mixture of fatty acids used to build all acyl containing biomolecules. Characterizing the diversity of fatty acid structures, understanding the biology underlying their biosynthesis and regulation of their abundance, and their function, is essential to maintenance, optimization, and potential optimization of function.
Specialized mass spectrometry methods are required to fully characterize fatty acid structures. More than 400 fatty acids have been identified in bovine milk. Armed with specific methods, the specificity of genes and enzymes dedicated to fatty acid interconversion can be characterized. In humans, the major genes are FADS1-2, ELOVL1-7, FASN, and beta- and alpha- oxidation genes. Alternative transcripts also play a role though little data are available on their function or regulation.
Deuteration at key oxidatively labile sites is a novel and unique emerging principle now demonstrated in vivo as protective against oxidative insult. Unlike D-substituted xenobiotics, D-PUFA must function as normal metabolites while resisting uncontrolled oxidation.
The rich knowledge base for fatty acids has broad implications for health. Even so, they remain a rich area of research in all domains.
