Fatty-acyl-CoA synthase
Fatty acids are key components of a cell, therefore, the regulation or inhibition of fatty acid synthesis hold severe consequences for cellular function. The malfunction of the fatty acid synthesis pathway can result in cancer and obesity. However, the significance of fatty acid synthesis also make the fatty acid synthesis pathway a potential target for the search and study of anticancer and antibiotic drugs. It has been found that in humans, fatty acid synthase, is overly expressed in cancer cells. Therefore, FAS, which has been associated only with energy production prior, is now associated with aggressive tumor growth and survival. Studies have also found that human fatty acid synthase is overly expressed in prostate cancer cells.
Fat
There are many different kinds of fats, but each is a variation on the same chemical structure. All fats are derivatives of fatty acids and glycerol. Most fats are glycerides, particularly triglycerides (triesters of glycerol). One chain of fatty acid is bonded to each of the three -OH groups of the glycerol by the reaction of the carboxyl end of the fatty acid (-COOH) with the alcohol; I.e. three chains per molecule. Water is eliminated and the carbons are linked by an -O- bond through dehydration synthesis. This process is called esterification and fats are therefore esters. As a simple visual illustration, if the kinks and angles of these chains were straightened out, the molecule would have the shape of a capital letter E. The fatty acids would each be a horizontal line; the glycerol "backbone" would be the vertical line that joins the horizontal lines. Fats therefore have "ester" bonds.