Arachidonic Acid

Arachidonic Acid

Arachidonic acid (ARA) is a 20-carbon chain fatty acid with four methylene-interrupted cis double bonds, the first with respect to the methyl end (omega, ω or n) is located between carbon 6 and 7. Hence, ARA belongs to the omega-6 (n-6) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), is designated as 20:4ω-6, with a biochemical nomenclature of all-cis-5,8,11,14-eicosatetraenoic acid, and usually assumes a hairpin configuration. ARA is an omega-6 polyunsaturated fatty acid [C20:4 (n-6)], naturally present in human mother's milk. Adults can easily convert dietary fatty acids to ARA and DHA but tahat ability is incompletely developed in infants, leaving breast milk as their only natural source of ARA and DHA.

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