2. Academic Validation
  3. Malonyl-CoA: the regulator of fatty acid synthesis and oxidation

Malonyl-CoA: the regulator of fatty acid synthesis and oxidation

  • J Clin Invest. 2012 Jun;122(6):1958-9. doi: 10.1172/jci63967.
Daniel W Foster 1
Affiliations

Affiliation

  • 1 Department of Internal Medicine, University Of Texas SW Medical Center, Dallas, Texas 75390-9030, USA. [email protected]
PMID: 22833869 DOI: 10.1172/jci63967
Abstract

In the catabolic state with no food intake, the liver generates ketones by breaking down fatty acids. During the nocturnal fast or longer starvation periods, this protects the brain, which cannot oxidize fatty acids. In 1977, we published a study in the JCI noting the surprising realization that malonyl-CoA, the substrate of fatty acid synthesis, was also an inhibitor of fatty acid oxidation. Subsequent experiments have borne out this finding and furthered our understanding of molecular metabolism.

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