Hydroxybutyric acid
Hydroxybutyric acid is a group of four-carbon organic compounds that have both hydroxyl and carboxylic acid functional groups. They can be viewed as derivatives of butyric acid. The carboxylate anion and the esters of hydroxybutyric acids are known as hydroxybutyrates. β-hydroxybutyric acid is relevant to human health as it is a member of a class of products of fatty acid oxidation referred to as ketone bodies.
Skeletal formula of α-hydroxybutyric acid
Skeletal formula of β-hydroxybutyric acid
Skeletal formula of γ-hydroxybutyric acid
There are three isomers, distinguished by the distance between the two functional groups:
- alpha-Hydroxybutyric acid (2-hydroxybutyric acid)
- beta-Hydroxybutyric acid (3-hydroxybutyric acid)
- gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid (4-hydroxybutyric acid, GHB)
Skeletal formula of butyric acid with the alpha, beta, and gamma carbons marked
External links
- Hydroxybutyrates at the US National Library of Medicine Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.