Fatty acids source indicators

Stonyfield farms, a commercial processor in the United States, has initiated a "Greener Cow Project" to decrease CIT4 emissions by feeding cows a diet rich in natural omega-3 sources http / www.stonyfield.com/ search/index.jsp q=greener-icow x=12 y=8. Preliminary results indicate a reduction of enteric emissions by an average of 12% and an increase in omega-3 fatty acids in milk. 

Although there are some reports to the contrary, the evidence on the whole would seem to indicate that the straight chain fatty acids with an even number of carbon atoms are entirely ineffective as sources of carbohydrate. With the possible exception of acetic acid, the administration of the even-numbered fatty acids uniformly gives rise to a ketonuria,63 64 while it has been demonstrated repeatedly that substances convertible to carbohydrate counteract an existing ketonuria. 

The composition of seed oil triglycerides is well understood. Triglycerides are fatty acid esters of glycerin, and the composition depends on the source of the oil (Figure 2). The nomenclature used is standard in the fats and oils industry, with the number of carbons in the fatty acid indicated first, followed by the number of sites of unsaturation in parentheses. 

M. coturnix ceramide. Intriguingly, fucosylated glycolipids obtained from E. multilocularis were found to possess only short-chain fatty acids with 16 and 18 carbon atoms (mainly 0 6 0 and C18h 0), which might indicate that the (a1-3)-fucosyltransferase involved in the biosynthesis of such compounds requires an acceptor substrate with shorter fatty acids, whereas ((51 -6)-galactosyltransferase from this source obviously accepts all kinds of galacto-sylceramide precursors (Persat et al., 1992). 

Aliphatic hydrocarbons such as n-alkanes and n-alkenes have been successfully used to distinguish between algal, bacterial, and terrestrial sources of carbon in estuarine/coastal systems (Yunker et al., 1991, 1993, 1995 Canuel et al., 1997). Saturated aliphatic hydrocarbons are considered to be alkanes (or paraffins) and nonsaturated hydrocarbons which exhibit one or more double bonds are called alkenes (or olefins)—as indicated in the simple structures of hexadecane and 1,3-butadiene, respectively (figure 9.7). It should also be noted that, n-alkanes tend to be odd-numbered as they result from enzymatic decarboxylation of fatty acids. Long-chain n-alkanes (LCH) (e.g., C27, C29, and C31) are generally considered to be terrestrially derived, originating from epicuticular waxes... 

Long-chain fatty acids saturated fatty acids (>C22) that are generally thought to be indicative of terrestrial organic matter sources. 

There are few reports on the inhibitory effect of conjugated polyenes on the growth of cancer cell lines. Begin et al. (1988) reported the toxic effect of eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) on several kinds of tumor cells other polyunsaturated fatty acids, i.e., arachidonic acid (22 4n-6), a-linolenic acid (18 3n-3), and y-linolenic acid (18 3n-6) have cytotoxic action on several tumor cell lines at concentrations above 50 pM. Further, Tsuzuki et al. (2004) demonstrated that the anticarcinogenic effect of CLN are directly associated with lipid peroxidation. They transplanted human colon cancer cells (DLD-1) into nude mice, and CLA (9c, lit and lOt, 12c-18 2) and CLN (9c, lit, 13t-18 3) were administered to animals. Tumor growth was suppressed by the supplementation of CLA and CLN, and the extent of suppression was CLN >9c, llt-CLA.>10t, 12c-CLA, in that order. Furthermore, DNA fragmentation was enhanced and lipid peroxidation increased in tumor cells of the CLN-fed mouse. Thus this study indicates the possibility of seaweeds as potential sources of anticancer substances. 

The names of common fatty acids under several conventions, carbon numbers, and selected properties are shown in Table 34.1. The common (trivial) names of some fatty acids are of long standing, and often indicate the initial source studied. As examples butyric acid is a major component of butter flavor the 6, 8, and 10 saturated fatty acids have been called the goaty acids because they impart the characteristic flavors of goat and... 

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