THE FATTY ACIDS AND THE SKIN:

A FOCUS ON THE N-6 FAMILY OF

UNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS

BY: DYAH WULANDARI, S.SI., PH.D

CROSS-SECTION OF SKIN AND PANNICULUS
WHAT ARE FATTY ACIDS?
STRUCTURE AND CHEMICAL NATURE
OF FATTY ACIDS
HUMAN BODY FATTY ACID FROM C2-C26
 FATTY ACIDS BASED ON
NATURE AND NUMBER OF BONDS PRESENT
 FATTY ACIDS BASED ON
NATURE AND NUMBER OF BONDS PRESENT

Human body have no Enzyme system to introduce double bond beyond Carbon atom 10 in the hydrocarbon
chain. Hence PUFAs are not biosynthesized in human beings.
NUTRITIONALLY ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS

– Linoleic
– Linolenic
– Arachidonic acids
– Timnodonic and
– Cervonic

NUTRITIONALLY NON-ESSENTIAL FATTY ACIDS

• Fatty acids which are biosynthesized in the body and are nutritionally non essential Fatty
acids. -Saturated Fatty acids and MUFAs are non essential Fatty acids. • Palmitic
• Stearic
• Oleic acid
FATTY ACIDS CHAIN
Trans Fatty Acids
 FATTY ACID METABOLISM AND SIGNIFICANT
HEALTH

• Eat natural Cis forms of Fatty acids

• Avoid Hydrogenated Trans Fatty acids
• Eat home made food
• Avoid Processed/Junk Foods
PUFAS AND OMEGA FATTY ACIDS
 SOURCES OF FATTY ACIDS TO HUMAN BODY
Exogenous Sources- Dietary Food Items
Endogenous Biosynthesis- From Free Excess Glucose in Liver
FATTY ACID COMPOSITION OF HUMAN BODY
Ideal Requirement of Fatty Acids To Human Body
It is ideal to consume ratio of:
1 : 1 : 1
SFA MUFA PUFAs
respectively from the diet to maintain good
health.
• Naturally there is no single oil which has all
3 types of fatty acids in ideal proportion.

• Hence it is always advisable to mix a

combination of oils and consume.

• Thus most abundant Fatty

acids present in human
Lipids are:
– Oleic acid (50%)
– Palmitic acid(35%)
 TRANSPORTATION OF FATTY ACIDS IN HUMAN BODY
• Bound form /Esterified Forms Of Fatty acids are Transported through various Lipoproteins.
• More than 90% of the fatty acids found in plasma are in the form of Fatty acid esters.
– Fatty acids Esters/Esterifed form of Fatty acids exist as:
– Triacylglycerol
– Cholesteryl esters
– Phospholipids

• Unesterified/Free Fatty acids (FFA) are very less amount in body.

• Long Chain FFA are transported in the blood circulation in association with Albumin.
 FUNCTIONS OF FATTY ACIDS

1. Secondary Source Of Energy

2. Components Of Biomembranes
3. PUFA (Arachidonic Acid) Precursor for Eicosanoid Biosynthesis
4. Esterification of Cholesterol and its Excretion
5. PUFAs build and protect Brain and Heart
6. PUFAs prevents early ageing, prolongs Clotting time.

• PUFAs of membrane play role in:(Less compact)

– Membrane fluidity
– Selective permeability

• Functions Of PUFAS /Omega 3, and 6 Fas:

Components of cell biomembranes
More associated to Human brain and Heart
Involve in Growth ,development and functioning of Brain
 OMEGA FATTY ACIDS REDUCES RISK OF HEART DISEASE:
– Reduces Platelet aggregation by stimulating Prostaglandins and Prostacyclin's .
– Reduces blood clotting and Thrombus formation by Lowering the production of Thromboxane .

Omega 3 Fatty acids have pleiotropic effects (more than one effect):
Cardio protective effect
Lowers Blood pressure
Anti-Inflammatory
Anti-Atherogenic
Anti-Thrombotic

PUFAs Lowers Risk Of Atherosclerosis:

• Since double bonds of PUFAs are unstable and easily cleavable.
• PUFAs get easily metabolized and do not get accumulated in the blood arteries and capillaries.
• Thus PUFAs have low risk of Atherosclerosis and Cardio vascular disorders.
• Fish (rich in Omega 3 Fatty acids) Eaters has Healthy Brain and Heart
• Brain development with an efficient nervous function.
• Protected from Heart attacks.

• Deficiency of Essential Fatty acids :

• Affects every cell ,organ and system
– Growth retardation
– Problems with reproduction
– Skin lesions
– Kidney and Liver disorders
– Brain disorders/Behavioral disorders.
 DEFICIENCY OF PUFAS/ OMEGA 3,6 FATTY ACIDS
• Deficit of omega fatty acids affect the normal growth ,development and functioning of brain.
• Persons may suffer from mental illness like:
– Depression
– Attention deficit
– Dementia=Alzheimer's Disease
• Deficiency of Omega 3 Fatty acids :
– Alters the cell membrane structure.
– Increases the risk of
• Heart attack
• Cancer
• Rheumatoid Arthritis
 Phrynoderma /Toad Skin is due to PUFA deficiency.
• The skin becomes dry with lesions (Scaly Dermatitis).
• Presence of horny erruptions on the posterior and lateral parts of limbs, back and Buttock.
• Loss of hair
• Poor wound healing
• Acanthosis and Hyperkeratosis

Deficiency of PUFAs lower:

Oxidative Phosphorylation-ATP generation
Fibrinolytic Activities
 CLASSICAL SYMPTOMS OF ESSENTIAL FATTY ACID-DEFICIENCY IN RATS.

The (n-6) fatty acids are essential dietary components for all mammals
and birds, whereas their nutritive importance for fish and insects is less
clear. Burr and Burr discovered in 1929-1930 that young growing rats
would develop scaly skin, hair loss and poor growth on a fat-free diet,
and these deficiency symptoms.

An example of a linoleic acid-deficient rat and a control rat, both of the strain of hairless rats. The rat
to the left (nr 10) is the control rat, and it has a normal body weight and weak yellow pigmentation on the skin.
The rat to the right (nr 58) has received the essential fatty acid-deficient diet, and it shows poor growth (low body
weight), increased trans-epidermal water loss, and no pigmentation of the skin. (Jensen et al., 2002)
(N-6) FATTY ACID TURNOVER AND NUTRITION

Turnover and some biological functions of the two major (n-6)-fatty

acids, linoleic acid and
arachidonic acid, in humans. A high dietary intake of linoleic acid
(18:2(n-6)) and a corresponding large pool
of linoleic acid esterified in body lipids are typical for humans in
most Western societies. A very minor amount of
linoleic acid can be elongated and desaturated by human enzymes
to form arachidonic acid (20:4(n-6), which
is found in a much smaller pool in the body, primarily in
phospholipids in cell membranes. Linoleic acid is also
found in some special ceramides of the skin, where it serves an
essential function in maintaining
the water permeability barrier of the skin. Omnivorous humans
have a small dietary intake of arachidonic
acid, derived from animal products. The very small daily
endogenous production of signalling eicosanoids (i.e.
prostaglandins, leukotrienes, and other oxidized arachidnoic acid
derivatives) is far smaller than the turnover of
arachidnoic acid, either formed endogenously from linoleic acid or
available in the diet. Besides the eicosanoids,
arachidonic acid is also a precursor for signaling
endocannabinoids, which probably also are formed in minute
amounts. (After Hansen and Artmann, 2008)
Linoleic acid and epidermal water permeability Barrier

The content of lamellar bodies in dying keratinocytes is

secreted and processed to become
extracellular lamellar membranes, which mainly consists of
ceramides, free fatty acids cholestrol. Several enzymes
are involved in this process, e.g. secretory phospholipase
A2 (sPLA2) that hydrolyses phospholipids, β-glucosidase
that hydrolyses glucosylceramide, sphingomyelinase that
hydrolyses sphingomyelin and steroid sulfatase that
hydrolyses cholesteryl sulfate. The extracellular lamellar
membranes that are positioned between the dead
keratinocytes/cornocytes represent a major part of the
water permeability barrier of the skin.
 KEY FACTS
• All mammals have a water permeability barrier in the epidermis of the skin that prevents water
loss from the body.
• This barrier consists of dead skin cells surrounded by layers of lipids.
• The barrier lipids consist of a mixture of cholesterol, free fatty acids and special ceramides,
among which is a unique ceramide containing linoleic acid.
• Linoleic acid can not be formed by mammals but has to be ingested with the food.
• Linoleic acid is a (n-6)-fatty acid, also called ω6-fatty acid.
• Linoleic acid is a polyunsaturated fatty acid, which in the body can be converted to a number of
other polyunsaturated fatty acid, all belonging to the linoleic acid-family or also called (n-6)
fatty acids.
• Polyunsaturated fatty acids are fatty acids with two or more chemical double bonds, and they
are typically found in many vegetable oils.
 KEY FACTS
• Linoleic acid is an essential fatty acid that has to be consumed in the diet.
• Prolonged deficiency of linoleic acid results in a defective water permeability barrier of the
skin, resulting in increased water loss over the skin.
• Humans who ingest less than 2 g/day of linoleic acid for many months may risk development of
a defective water permeability barrier.
• Humans in the western societies consume between 8-25 g/day of linoleic acid, which is found in
most vegetable oils and other food items.
• Thus, deficiency of linoleic acid in humans is practically non-existing.
• Linoleic acid and its endogenous derivative arachidonic acid are most probably also involved in
many other both beneficial and harmful functions within the skin, among which are skin cell
differentiation, inflammation, immune reactions and cancer.
• However, our scientific knowledge is still too scattered to know whether dietary or topical
supplementation with specific fatty acid of the linoleic acid-family can have any beneficial
effect on various skin functions.
 SUMMARY POINTS

• Linoleic acid serves via its incorporation into special ceramides an essential function in
maintaining the water permeability barrier of the skin.
• The dietary requirement of linoleic acid for this essential function is below the 2% of dietary
energy intake, and lack of linoleic acid in the diet of humans in the western societies is
practically non-existing.
• Derivatives of linoleic acid and arachidonic acid most probably serve several important
functions in maintaining a healthy skin.
• Our knowledge is still too scattered to suggest that dietary supplementation or topical
application of specific (n-6)-fatty acids will have any beneficial effect.
THANK YOU