Gorlic acid
Gorlic acid is a long-chain unsaturated carbocyclic fatty acid composed of 18 carbon atoms, featuring a five-membered cyclopentene ring and a cis-double bond in the position 6=7. The chemical formula is. In biochemistry, the compound is considered a rare fatty acid that is only found in some plants.
Natural occurrence
The acid was initially isolated by French chemists E. André and D. Jouatte in 1928—from the seed oil of a tropical West African tree Oncoba echinata, called "gorli" in the local language, hence the name.The seeds of a large number of shrubs and trees belonging to the plant family formerly called Flacourtiaceae contain lipids that are characterized by cyclopentenyl fatty acids, one of which is gorlic acid. The concentrations of gorlic acid in the carbohydrates of seed oils are: Hydnocarpus kurzii, Caloncoba echinata, Taraktogenos merrilliano, Hydnocarpus anthelminticus, Hydnocarpus wightiana, and others to a lesser extent.
Chemically, it's an unsaturated fatty acid with a cyclopentene ring, and often found alongside its isomer, chaulmoogric acid, in traditional remedies from Asia and Africa.