Stearoyl-CoA is a

coenzyme A cofactor is a non-protein chemical compound or metallic ion that is required for an enzyme's role as a catalyst (a catalyst is a substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction). Cofactors can be considered "helper molecules" that ass ...

involved in the metabolism of

fatty acid In chemistry, particularly in biochemistry, a fatty acid is a carboxylic acid with an aliphatic chain, which is either saturated or unsaturated. Most naturally occurring fatty acids have an unbranched chain of an even number of carbon atoms, fr ...

s. Stearoyl-CoA is an 18-carbon long fatty acyl-CoA chain that participates in an unsaturation reaction. The reaction is catalyzed by the enzyme stearoyl-CoA desaturase, which is located in the

endoplasmic reticulum The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is, in essence, the transportation system of the eukaryotic cell, and has many other important functions such as protein folding. It is a type of organelle made up of two subunits – rough endoplasmic reticulum ( ...

. It forms a cis-double bond between the ninth and tenth carbons within the chain to form the product oleoyl-CoA.

References

Bibliography

* Metabolism Thioesters of coenzyme A {{biochemistry-stub