Coniferonic acid
Coniferonic acid is a polyunsaturated fatty acid composed of 18 carbon atoms with four double bonds, in positions 5=6, 9=10, 12=13, 15=16; all in cis-configuration.
Discovery and natural occurrence
The acid has been isolated in the leaves of conifers, from which it took its common name. The species with the highest concentration are Larix decidua containing about 44% of the total fatty acids, Abies grandis, Araucaria montana, and Abies veitchii.It is also found in the seed oil of Korean pine or Pinus koraiensis and Fokienia hodginsii.
Oftentimes, it is found in conifers together with other fatty acids that have a double bond in the position 5, separated by more than one methylene group from the next double bond.