AlkeneIn organic chemistry, an alkene is a hydrocarbon containing a carbon–carbon double bond. The double bond may be internal or in the terminal position. Terminal alkenes are also known as α-olefins. The International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) recommends using the name "alkene" only for acyclic hydrocarbons with just one double bond; alkadiene, alkatriene, etc., or polyene for acyclic hydrocarbons with two or more double bonds; cycloalkene, cycloalkadiene, etc.
Fatty acidIn chemistry, particularly in biochemistry, a fatty acid is a carboxylic acid with an aliphatic chain, which is either saturated or unsaturated. Most naturally occurring fatty acids have an unbranched chain of an even number of carbon atoms, from 4 to 28. Fatty acids are a major component of the lipids (up to 70% by weight) in some species such as microalgae but in some other organisms are not found in their standalone form, but instead exist as three main classes of esters: triglycerides, phospholipids, and cholesteryl esters.
Polyunsaturated fatty acidIn biochemistry and nutrition, polyunsaturated fatty acids (abbreviated PUFAs) are fatty acids that contain more than one double bond in their backbone. This class includes many important compounds, such as essential fatty acids and those that give drying oils their characteristic property. Polyunsaturated fatty acids are precursors to and are derived from polyunsaturated fats. Polyunsaturated fatty acids are a subclass of fatty acids possessing two or more carbon–carbon double bonds.
Unsaturated fatAn unsaturated fat is a fat or fatty acid in which there is at least one double bond within the fatty acid chain. A fatty acid chain is monounsaturated if it contains one double bond, and polyunsaturated if it contains more than one double bond. A saturated fat has no carbon to carbon double bonds, so the maximum possible number of hydrogens bonded to the carbons, and is "saturated" with hydrogen atoms. To form carbon to carbon double bonds, hydrogen atoms are removed from the carbon chain.
NomenclatureNomenclature (UK, US) is a system of names or terms, or the rules for forming these terms in a particular field of arts or sciences. The principles of naming vary from the relatively informal conventions of everyday speech to the internationally agreed principles, rules and recommendations that govern the formation and use of the specialist terminology used in scientific and any other disciplines.
Essential fatty acidEssential fatty acids, or EFAs, are fatty acids that humans and other animals must ingest because the body requires them for good health, but cannot synthesize them. Only two fatty acids are known to be essential for humans: alpha-linolenic acid (an omega-3 fatty acid) and linoleic acid (an omega-6 fatty acid). These are supplied to the body either as the free fatty acid, or more commonly as some glyceride derivative. Deficiency in these fatty acids is rare.
Monounsaturated fat_Monounsaturated fatty acid In biochemistry and nutrition, monounsaturated fats (also known as monounsaturated fatty acids or MUFAs) are fatty acids that have one double bond in the fatty acid chain with all of the remainder carbon atoms being single-bonded. By contrast, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) have more than one double bond. Fatty acids are long-chained molecules having an alkyl group at one end and a carboxylic acid group at the other end.
Omega-3 fatty acidOmega−3 fatty acids, also called Omega−3 oils, ω−3 fatty acids or n−3 fatty acids, are polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) characterized by the presence of a double bond, three atoms away from the terminal methyl group in their chemical structure. They are widely distributed in nature, being important constituents of animal lipid metabolism, and they play an important role in the human diet and in human physiology. The three types of omega−3 fatty acids involved in human physiology are α-linolenic acid (ALA), eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA).
Botanical nomenclatureBotanical nomenclature is the formal, scientific naming of plants. It is related to, but distinct from taxonomy. Plant taxonomy is concerned with grouping and classifying plants; botanical nomenclature then provides names for the results of this process. The starting point for modern botanical nomenclature is Linnaeus' Species Plantarum of 1753. Botanical nomenclature is governed by the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (ICN), which replaces the International Code of Botanical Nomenclature (ICBN).
Saturated and unsaturated compoundsA saturated compound is a chemical compound (or ion) that resists addition reactions, such as hydrogenation, oxidative addition, and binding of a Lewis base. The term is used in many contexts and for many classes of chemical compounds. Overall, saturated compounds are less reactive than unsaturated compounds. Saturation is derived from the Latin word saturare, meaning 'to fill'. Unsaturated compounds generally carry out typical addition reactions that are not possible with saturated compounds such as alkanes.
Nomenclature codesNomenclature codes or codes of nomenclature are the various rulebooks that govern biological taxonomic nomenclature, each in their own broad field of organisms. To an end-user who only deals with names of species, with some awareness that species are assignable to families, it may not be noticeable that there is more than one code, but beyond this basic level these are rather different in the way they work. The successful introduction of two-part names for species by Linnaeus was the start for an ever-expanding system of nomenclature.
Fatty acid desaturaseFatty acid desaturases (also called unsaturases) are a family of enzymes that convert saturated fatty acids into unsaturated fatty acids and polyunsaturated fatty acids. For the common fatty acids of the C18 variety, desaturases convert stearic acid into oleic acid. Other desaturases convert oleic acid into linolenic acid, which is the precursor to alpha-linolenic acid, gamma-linolenic acid, and eicosatrienoic acid. Two subgroups of desaturases are recognized: Delta - indicating that the double bond is created at a fixed position from the carboxyl end of a fatty acid chain.
CarbocationA carbocation is an ion with a positively charged carbon atom. Among the simplest examples are the methenium CH3+, methanium CH5+ and vinyl C2H3+ cations. Occasionally, carbocations that bear more than one positively charged carbon atom are also encountered (e.g., ethylene dication C2H42+). Until the early 1970s, all carbocations were called carbonium ions. In the present-day definition given by the IUPAC, a carbocation is any even-electron cation with significant partial positive charge on a carbon atom.
Organic compoundIn chemistry, many authors consider an organic compound to be any chemical compound that contains carbon-hydrogen or carbon-carbon bonds, however, some authors consider an organic compound to be any chemical compound that contains carbon. The definition of "organic" versus "inorganic" varies from author to author, and is a topic of debate. For example, methane () is considered organic, but whether some other carbon-containing compounds are organic or inorganic varies from author to author, for example halides of carbon without carbon-hydrogen and carbon-carbon bonds (e.
Binomial nomenclatureIn taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, both of which use Latin grammatical forms, although they can be based on words from other languages. Such a name is called a binomial name (which may be shortened to just "binomial"), a binomen, name, or a scientific name; more informally it is also historically called a Latin name.
Alpha-olefinIn organic chemistry, alpha-olefins (or α-olefins) are a family of organic compounds which are alkenes (also known as olefins) with a chemical formula , distinguished by having a double bond at the primary or alpha (α) position. This location of a double bond enhances the reactivity of the compound and makes it useful for a number of applications. There are two types of alpha-olefins, branched and linear (or normal).
Aliphatic compoundIn organic chemistry, hydrocarbons (compounds composed solely of carbon and hydrogen) are divided into two classes: aromatic compounds and aliphatic compounds (ˌælᵻˈfætᵻk; G. aleiphar, fat, oil). Aliphatic compounds can be saturated (in which all the C-C bonds are single requiring the structure to be completed, or 'saturated', by hydrogen) like hexane, or unsaturated, like hexene and hexyne. Open-chain compounds, whether straight or branched, and which contain no rings of any type, are always aliphatic.
Organic chemistryOrganic chemistry is a subdiscipline within chemistry involving the scientific study of the structure, properties, and reactions of organic compounds and organic materials, i.e., matter in its various forms that contain carbon atoms. Study of structure determines their structural formula. Study of properties includes physical and chemical properties, and evaluation of chemical reactivity to understand their behavior.
ProstaglandinProstaglandins (PG) are a group of physiologically active lipid compounds called eicosanoids having diverse hormone-like effects in animals. Prostaglandins have been found in almost every tissue in humans and other animals. They are derived enzymatically from the fatty acid arachidonic acid. Every prostaglandin contains 20 carbon atoms, including a 5-carbon ring. They are a subclass of eicosanoids and of the prostanoid class of fatty acid derivatives. The structural differences between prostaglandins account for their different biological activities.
Radical (chemistry)In chemistry, a radical, also known as a free radical, is an atom, molecule, or ion that has at least one unpaired valence electron. With some exceptions, these unpaired electrons make radicals highly chemically reactive. Many radicals spontaneously dimerize. Most organic radicals have short lifetimes. A notable example of a radical is the hydroxyl radical (HO·), a molecule that has one unpaired electron on the oxygen atom. Two other examples are triplet oxygen and triplet carbene (꞉CH2) which have two unpaired electrons.
