Update (September 2016)

Cayman scientists synthesize novel 'good' fats

ANN ARBOR, MI, DECEMBER 15, 2014: Cayman Chemical scientists have synthesized a novel family of branched fatty acid hydroxy fatty acids (FAHFAs) that may be the next 'good' fat. While omega-3 fatty acids are known to have numerous positive actions, FAHFAs are a group of newly-discovered lipids with unexplored potential that are now available from Cayman for research applications.

FAHFAs are a class of bioactive lipids that offer the potential to improve blood sugar, protect against diabetes, and reduce inflammation. Scientists at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston and at the Salk Institute in La Jolla identified FAHFAs as being produced naturally in adipose tissue and associated with insulin sensitivity.¹ PAHSA, the combination of palmitic acid and hydroxy stearic acid, was abundantly found in the fat of diabetes-resistant mice and was significantly reduced in humans with early stages of diabetes.¹ When fed to obese diabetic mice, 9-PAHSA was reported to contribute to glucose-insulin homeostasis and to elicit anti-inflammatory effects.¹ At least a dozen related family members remain to be studied.

While FAHFAs do exist at low levels within certain foods, the scientists who discovered them believed that they are mainly synthesized in the body. Detection of low FAHFA levels in the blood may become a reliable, early biomarker for the onset of diabetes. Potential exists for the discovery of new therapeutics that would target the pathways that make or break down lipids to control FAHFA levels. Much work remains to determine if the restoration of these lipids will reduce the risk of developing diabetes or prevent the disease altogether. Next steps of the research will need to pinpoint the signaling pathways involved.

Kirk Maxey, MD, Cayman Chemical's president, said, "For more than 30 years, we have been the industry leaders in supplying quality bioactive lipid standards. This is a groundbreaking discovery that Cayman enthusiastically lends its technical expertise to in order to make these novel lipids accessible to the greater research community."

Additional information on these novel FAHFAs, including custom synthesis requests and other products for research on lipids, fatty acids, inflammation, diabetes, obesity and metabolic syndrome, can be found at www.caymanchem.com.

References

1. Yore, M.M., Syed, I., Moraes-Vieira, P.M., et al. Discovery of a class of endogenous mammalian lipids with anti-diabetic and anti-inflammatory effects. Cell159(2), 318-332 (2014).