Decarboxylation of 2-keto fatty acids by brain.

An enzyme system consisting of washed acetone powder of pig brain, adenosine triphosphate, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, magnesium, fumaric acid, and ascorbic acid was found to catalyze the oxidative decarboxylation of 2-ketostearic acid. The products were carbon dioxide and heptadecanoic acid. Washing the enzyme powder with ethylene-diaminetetraacetate and other chelating agents destroyed the activity. Further properties of the enzyme system are described. It is believed that this enzyme system accounts in part for the 1-carbon degradation route for brain fatty acids.