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Fatty acid

(Science: biochemistry) Any number of saturated aliphatic monocarboxylic acids. A metabolic byproduct from the breakdown of fats.

Chemically R COOH where R is an aliphatic moiety.

The common fatty acids of biological origin are linear chains with an even number of carbon atoms. Free fatty acids are present in living tissues at low concentrations. The esterified forms are important both as energy storage molecules and structural molecules.

See: triglycerides, phospholipids. Any of a class of aliphatic monocarboxylic acids that form part of a lipid molecule and can be derived from fat by hydrolysis; fatty acids are simple molecules built around a series of carbon atoms linked together in a chain of 12 to 22 carbon atoms.