Figure 1.

Synthesis of EPA, DPA and DHA from ALA. The longer chain omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are synthesized from ALA by a progressive series of enzymatic desaturation and chain elongation steps, initially in the endoplasmic reticulum. In the final stage tetracosahexaenoic acid (24:6n-3) is translocated to the peroxisome and is shorted by one cycle of the β-oxidation pathway to form DHA (22:6n-3). For further details refer to the text. Figure adapted from Dyall and Michael-Titus (2008).