Gadoleic acid (20:1 n−11) is an

unsaturated 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, f ...

. It is a prominent component of some

fish oil Fish oil is oil derived from the tissues of oily fish. Fish oils contain the omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), precursors of certain eicosanoids that are known to reduce inflammation in the b ...

s including

cod liver oil Cod liver oil is a dietary supplement derived from liver of cod fish (Gadidae). As with most fish oils, it contains the omega-3 fatty acids eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), and also vitamin A and vitamin D. Histori ...

. It is one of a number of

eicosenoic acid Eicosenoic acid may refer to one of three closely related chemical compounds: * 9-Eicosenoic acid (gadoleic acid), an omega-11 fatty acid (20:1ω11) * 11-Eicosenoic acid (gondoic acid), an omega-9 fatty acid (20:1ω9) * 13-Eicosenoic acid (paull ...

s. Its name is derived from a combination of the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

for cod (''Gadus'') and the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...

word ''oleum'' (oil), which itself is derived from the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic pe ...

ἔλαιον (elaion) meaning olive oil.

References

Fatty acids Alkenoic acids {{organic-compound-stub