Interactions in the metabolism of polyunsaturated fatty acids: analysis by a simple mathematical model

Abstract

Interactions in the metabolism of polyunsaturated fatty acids have been simulated in a simple model system. In the development of this system it was assumed that simple competitive inhibition occurs between parent acids as they are transformed (via dehydrogenation and chain lengthening) to their derivative acids. Numerical solutions of this model system give the composition of the tissue pool of polyunsaturated acids as a function of the proportion of the parent acids in the diet. Experimental data have been analyzed in the light of relations generated by the model system and the parallels observed substantiate the assumptions postulated in the development of the model system.