Essential Fatty Acids

Of the various fatty acids found in the body, only linolenic acid (omega-3) and linoleic acid (omega-6) cannot be synthesized, and are thus “essential” and must be obtained in the diet. These fatty acids are an important constituent of the plasma membrane of the cell, and have a variety of regulatory functions in the body, most notably as the source of eicosanoids, a class of locally acting hormone-like compounds that includews prostaglandins (PG), prostacyclins (PGI), leukotrienes (LT) and thromboxanes (TX).