Formation of Monounsaturated Fatty Acids in Fatty Liver

1. Monoenoic acid formation from stearic acid was studied with liver preparations from starved and CCl4-intoxicated rats. The rate of monounsaturation decreased both in starved and CCl4-treated animals, while the oleic acid content increased in preparations of these fatty livers. Freeze-thawing of liver preparations reduced the desaturating activity. 2. The 14C-distribution pattern in oleic acid molecules derived from 1-14-stearic acid and from 1-14G-acetic acid, suggests that an intact 18-carbon unit is converted directly to oleic acid even in fatty liver, and that acetic acid may serve as a precursor of oleic acid only via stearic acid.