Physical-Chemical Constants and Fatty Acid Composition of Zosima absinthifolia Link. Fruit Oil

Zosima absinthifolia is the only species of Zosima genus in Azerbaijan. The aim of this study was to determine the quantitative and qualitative determination of fatty acids in the fruits of the plant Zosima absinthifolia, which is widespread in Absheron, as well as to study its physicochemical and organoleptic properties, possible use in the pharmaceutical and food industries. The oil obtained from the fruits of the plant collected from the Absheron Peninsula (Bibiheybat) was analyzed by gas chromatography. The oil was obtained at 60 °C for 8 h by the extraction of the fruits in a Soxhlet extractor. The yield was 10.36%. Chromatographic analysis of the oil obtained from plant fruits allowed to determine 14 fatty acids. The main component of Z. absinthifolia fruit oil is oleic acid (74.36%). Small amounts of caprylic and palmitic acids were also found to be 8.9% and 5.39%, respectively. The lowest percentage is palmitinoleic acid (0.07%). Physico-chemical constants and organoleptic properties of Z. absinthifolia fruit oil were also analyzed and it was determined that the percentage of free fatty acids in our sample was 2.47%, the peroxide value 34.16 mg O/kg and the saponification number 200.23 mg KOH/g.

Differential Effects of Oleic and Palmitic Acids on Lipid Droplet-Mitochondria Interaction in the Hepatic Cell Line HepG2

Fatty acid overload, either of the saturated palmitic acid (PA) or the unsaturated oleic acid (OA), causes triglyceride accumulation into specialized organelles termed lipid droplets (LD). However, only PA overload leads to liver damage mediated by mitochondrial dysfunction. Whether these divergent outcomes stem from differential effects of PA and OA on LD and mitochondria joint dynamics remains to be uncovered. Here, we contrast how both fatty acids impact the morphology and interaction between both organelles and mitochondrial bioenergetics in HepG2 cells. Using confocal microscopy, we showed that short-term (2–24 h) OA overload promotes more and bigger LD accumulation than PA. Oxygen polarography indicated that both treatments stimulated mitochondrial respiration; however, OA favored an overall build-up of the mitochondrial potential, and PA evoked mitochondrial fragmentation, concomitant with an ATP-oriented metabolism. Even though PA-induced a lesser increase in LD-mitochondria proximity than OA, those LD associated with highly active mitochondria suggest that they interact mainly to fuel fatty acid oxidation and ATP synthesis (that is, metabolically “active” LD). On the contrary, OA overload seemingly stimulated LD-mitochondria interaction mainly for LD growth (thus metabolically “passive” LDs). In sum, these differences point out that OA readily accumulates in LD, likely reducing their toxicity, while PA preferably stimulates mitochondrial oxidative metabolism, which may contribute to liver damage progression.

Evaluation of nuts morphology and composition of fatty acids in certain Iranian Pistacia vera L. (Anacardiaceae) cultivars

<p>Fruits of various Pistachio (<em>Pistacia vera</em> L.) cultivars are widely used in food industries for its inimitable color, taste and nutrient value.<strong> </strong>We elevated fruit morphology and kernel fatty acids composition of eleven Iranian cultivars of pistachio. Oils of kernels were extracted using cold press method, and composition of the oil fatty acids in the methyl ester form was detected using gas chromatography (GC). For morphological study, nine qualitative and quantitative traits were evaluated. The quantitative ones widely differed among the studied cultivars, and ANOVA test revealed the significant variations (<em>p</em> = 0.00) for all of them. Moreover, the qualitative traits varied among the cultivars. We characterized 11 fatty acid components representing about 99.56 to 100 % of the total oil composition. The principal fatty acids for all the cultivars were: oleic, linoleic and palmitic acids, while their amounts differed among the cultivars. In this regard, unsaturated fatty acids comprised the major oil part, 87.46 to 88.89 %. Oleic acid (53.11-70.99 %) and palmitic acid (9.09 to 10.55 %) were detected as the unsaturated and saturated fatty acids in all the evaluated cultivars. The quality index of oils were determined according to oleic/ linoleic acids ratio, which highly varied among the cultivars. According to UPGMA tree and PCO plot, we divided the investigated cultivars into four chemotypes, and each of them was characterized by the certain oil composition.</p>

Oleic and palmitic acids induce hepatic angiopoietin-like 4 expression predominantly via PPAR-γ in Larimichthys crocea

Angiopoietin-like 4 (ANGPTL4) is a potent regulator of triacylglycerol metabolism but knowledge of the mechanisms underlying ANGPTL4 transcription in response to fatty acids is still limited in teleost. In this study, we explored the molecular characterization of ANGPTL4 and regulatory mechanisms of ANGPTL4 in response to fatty acids in large yellow croaker (Larimichthys crocea). Here, croaker angptl4 contained a 1416 bp open reading frame encoding a protein of 471 amino acids with highly conserved 12-amino acid consensus motif. Angptl4 was widely expressed in croaker, with the highest expression in the liver. In vitro, oleic and palmitic acids (OA and PA) treatments strongly increased angptl4 mRNA expression in croaker hepatocytes. Moreover, angptl4 expression was positively regulated by peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor family (PPAR-α, β and γ) and expression of pparγ was also significantly increased in response to OA and PA. Moreover, inhibition of PPARγ abrogated OA or PA-induced angptl4 mRNA expression. Beyond that, PA might increase angptl4 expression partly via the insulin signaling. Overall, the expression of ANGPTL4 is strongly upregulated by OA and PA via PPARγ in the liver of croaker, which contributes to improve the understanding of the regulatory mechanisms of ANGPTL4 in fish.

Characterization of Fatty Acids as Biobased Organic Materials for Latent Heat Storage

This work aims to characterize phase change materials (PCM) for thermal energy storage in buildings (thermal comfort). Fatty acids, biobased organic PCM, are attractive candidates for integration into active or passive storage systems for targeted application. Three pure fatty acids (capric, myristic and palmitic acids) and two eutectic mixtures (capric-myristic and capric-palmitic acids) are studied in this paper. Although the main storage properties of pure fatty acids have already been investigated and reported in the literature, the information available on the eutectic mixtures is very limited (only melting temperature and enthalpy). This paper presents a complete experimental characterization of these pure and mixed fatty acids, including measurements of their main thermophysical properties (melting temperature and enthalpy, specific heats and densities in solid and liquid states, thermal conductivity, thermal diffusivity as well as viscosity) and the properties of interest regarding the system integrating the PCM (energy density, volume expansion). The storage performances of the studied mixtures are also compared to those of most commonly used PCM (salt hydrates and paraffins).

Concentration-dependent change in hypothalamic neuronal transcriptome by the dietary fatty acids: oleic and palmitic acids

Prenatal high-fat diet exposure increases hypothalamic neurogenesis events in embryos and programs offspring to be obesity-prone. The molecular mechanism involved in these dietary effects of neurogenesis are unknown. This study investigated the effects of oleic and palmitic acids, which are abundant in a high-fat diet, on the hypothalamic neuronal transcriptome and how these changes impact neurogenesis events. The results show differential effects of low and high concentrations of oleic or palmitic acid treatment on differential gene transcription. Gene ontology analysis uncovered significant gene enrichment in several cellular pathways involved in gene regulation and protein production, particularly with proliferation, migration, and cell survival. The enriched signaling pathways include Wnt, integrin, PDGF, and apoptosis, in addition endocrine function signaling pathways CCKR and GnRH. Further examination of proliferation and migration show low concentrations of oleic acid to stimulate proliferation and high concentrations of both oleic and palmitic acid to stimulate apoptosis. Oleic acid also reduced hypothalamic neuronal migration, with little effects by palmitic acid. The results show direct impact of the two most abundant fatty acids in a high fat diet to directly impact hypothalamic neuronal proliferation and migration. The results also uncovered signaling pathways affected by oleic and palmitic acid and suggest a mechanism of prenatal high-fat diet induced neurogenesis events is through these two abundant fatty acids.

Methanol-Based Esterification of Palm Oil Sludge – Preparation of Palmitic and Oleic Fatty Acid Ethyl Esters via Ethyl Acetate Transesterification

Acid-catalyzed Fischer esterification of fatty acids with methanol as a reagent and solvent is used to prepare long chain alkyl methyl esters. Transesterification of palm oil in basic media using methanol is a synthesis route to prepare monoalkyl methyl esters of fatty acids. In this work, we report performing Fischer esterification of a sample of local palm oil sludge (rich in fatty acids) in the presence of methanol and obtaining ethyl esters of oleic and palmitic acids from transesterification reactions during extractions with ethyl acetate.

Saturated free fatty acids and association with memory formation

Polyunsaturated free fatty acids (FFAs) such as arachidonic acid, released by phospholipase activity on membrane phospholipids, have long been considered beneficial for learning and memory and are known modulators of neurotransmission and synaptic plasticity. However, the precise nature of other FFA and phospholipid changes in specific areas of the brain during learning is unknown. Here, using a targeted lipidomics approach to characterise FFAs and phospholipids across the rat brain, we demonstrated that the highest concentrations of these analytes were found in areas of the brain classically involved in fear learning and memory, such as the amygdala. Auditory fear conditioning led to an increase in saturated (particularly myristic and palmitic acids) and to a lesser extent unsaturated FFAs (predominantly arachidonic acid) in the amygdala and prefrontal cortex. Both fear conditioning and changes in FFA required activation of NMDA receptors. These results suggest a role for saturated FFAs in memory acquisition.

Measurement of Steroid Fatty Acyl Esters in Blood and Brain

Steroid fatty acyl esters (FAEs) are a class of steroid conjugates that are abundant in circulation, have long half-lives, and are stored in lipid-rich tissues. Steroid-FAEs are present in many species, but their functions are poorly understood. They can be metabolized to active, unconjugated steroids and therefore may act as a reservoir of steroids. Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) is an androgen precursor that can be conjugated to various fatty acids. DHEA also modulates aggression in several species, including songbirds, rodents and humans. Recent studies suggest that DHEA-FAEs might be present in songbird blood and/or brain, in part, to regulate aggression. Here, we (1) investigated the abundance of multiple fatty acids in songbird blood and (2) developed an indirect method to measure DHEA-FAEs in songbird blood and brain. First, preliminary work demonstrated high circulating levels of total (esterified and non-esterified) fatty acids, especially oleic, linoleic, and palmitic acids. These data, in conjunction with previous research, suggest that these fatty acids might be conjugated to steroids, including DHEA. Second, we successfully developed a saponification technique to indirectly measure DHEA-FAEs. Saponification cleaves the bond between the steroid molecule and the fatty acid, and we then measure the unconjugated steroid. DHEA-FAEs were incubated in 0.5M potassium hydroxide in ethanol for 30 min at room temperature, and steroids were subsequently extracted twice with dichloromethane. Unconjugated DHEA was quantified using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS), the gold standard in steroid measurement. DHEA recovery was 88% using reference standards in neat solution. We validated this method with song sparrow plasma and chicken serum and obtained recoveries of 94-105% with intra-assay variation of 2.6%. Future research will directly measure specific DHEA-FAEs (e.g. DHEA-oleate) in blood and brain using LC-MS/MS. This research will elucidate the possible roles of steroid-FAEs in brain function and the regulation of steroid-dependent behavior. This work may also clarify the identities, levels and functions of steroid-FAEs in other species, including rodent models and humans. These data have implications for basic and clinical neuroendocrinology, offering insights into a possible storage system for steroids that may influence social behaviour.