Nervonic acid is a monounsaturated omega-9

Omega-9 fatty acid

n−9 fatty acids are a family of unsaturated fatty acids which have in common a final carbon–carbon double bond in the n−9 position; that is, the ninth bond from the end of the fatty acid.-Background:Some n−9s are common components of animal fat and vegetable oil...

 fatty acid

Fatty acid

In chemistry, especially biochemistry, a fatty acid is a carboxylic acid with a long unbranched aliphatic tail , which is either saturated or unsaturated. Most naturally occurring fatty acids have a chain of an even number of carbon atoms, from 4 to 28. Fatty acids are usually derived from...

. Nervonic acid has been identified as important in the biosynthesis of nerve cell myelin

Myelin

Myelin is a dielectric material that forms a layer, the myelin sheath, usually around only the axon of a neuron. It is essential for the proper functioning of the nervous system. Myelin is an outgrowth of a type of glial cell. The production of the myelin sheath is called myelination...

. It is found in the sphingolipids of white matter in human brain.

Nervonic acid is used in the treatment of disorders involving demyelination, such as adrenoleukodystrophy

Adrenoleukodystrophy

Adrenoleukodystrophy is a rare, inherited disorder that leads to progressive brain damage, failure of the adrenal glands and eventually death. ALD is a disease in a group of genetic disorders called leukodystrophies, whose chief feature is damage to myelin...

  and multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis

Multiple sclerosis is an inflammatory disease in which the fatty myelin sheaths around the axons of the brain and spinal cord are damaged, leading to demyelination and scarring as well as a broad spectrum of signs and symptoms...

where there is a decreased level of nervonic acid in sphingolipids.

Additional references

• Appelqvist (1976) Lipids in Cruciferae. In: Vaughan JG, Macleod AJ (Eds), The biology and the Chemistry of Cruciferae. Academic Press, London, UK, pp. 221-277.
• Sargent JR, Coupland K, Wilson R (1994). Nervonic Acid and Demyelinating Disease. Medical Hypothesese 42, pp. 237-242.