Stearic acid, also known as stearate or N-octadecanoic acid, is a member of the class of compounds known as long-chain fatty acids. Long-chain fatty acids are fatty acids with an aliphatic tail that contains between 13 and 21 carbon atoms. Thus, stearic acid is considered to be a fatty acid lipid molecule. Stearic acid is practically insoluble (in water) and a weakly acidic compound (based on its pKa). Stearic acid can be synthesized from octadecane. Stearic acid is also a parent compound for other transformation products, including but not limited to, 3-oxooctadecanoic acid, (9S,10S)-10-hydroxy-9-(phosphonooxy)octadecanoic acid, and 16-methyloctadecanoic acid. Stearic acid can be found in a number of food items such as green bell pepper, common oregano, ucuhuba, and babassu palm, which makes stearic acid a potential biomarker for the consumption of these food products. Stearic acid can be found primarily in most biofluids, including urine, feces, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), and sweat, as well as throughout most human tissues. Stearic acid exists in all living species, ranging from bacteria to humans. In humans, stearic acid is involved in the plasmalogen synthesis. Stearic acid is also involved in mitochondrial beta-oxidation of long chain saturated fatty acids, which is a metabolic disorder. Moreover, stearic acid is found to be associated with schizophrenia. Stearic acid is a non-carcinogenic (not listed by IARC) potentially toxic compound. Stearic acid ( STEER-ik, stee-ARR-ik) is a saturated fatty acid with an 18-carbon chain and has the IUPAC name octadecanoic acid. It is a waxy solid and its chemical formula is C17H35CO2H. Its name comes from the Greek word στέαρ "stéar", which means tallow. The salts and esters of stearic acid are called stearates. As its ester, stearic acid is one of the most common saturated fatty acids found in nature following palmitic acid. The triglyceride derived from three molecules of stearic acid is called stearin .
Belongs to the class of organic compounds known as long-chain fatty acids. These are fatty acids with an aliphatic tail that contains between 13 and 21 carbon atoms.
