Cyclopropene acid

Cyclopropene acids are a group of fatty acids. The best known cyclopropene acids are malvalic acid and sterculic acid.

Sterculic acid is present in sterculia oils and at low levels in kapok seed oil (~12%), cottonseed oil (~1%) and in the seeds of the tree Sterculia foetida (~65-78%). These acids are highly reactive and are destroyed during refining and hydrogenation of the oils. They have attracted interest because they inhibit the biodesaturation of stearic acid to oleic acid.

External links

• Carbocyclic fatty acids in plants: Biochemical and molecular genetic characterization of cyclopropane fatty acid synthesis of Sterculia foetida" 'Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States, 14 May 2002 pdf