Figure 1.

Sources and metabolism of n-6 and n-3 fatty acids. On the left side, the pathway of n-6 FA is described, which begins with linoleic acid to generate arachidonic acid through the enzyme Δ⁵-desaturase. On the right side, the n-3 FA pathway starts with linolenic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid is obtained through two steps, competing for the Δ⁵-desaturase enzyme in n-6 pathway. Subsequently, docosahexaenoic acid is generated by four consequent reactions.