Hydroxybutyric acid

Hydroxybutyric acid is a group of four-carbon organic compounds that have both hydroxyl and carboxylic acid functional groups.[1] 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
Skeletal formula of 2-hydroxyisobutyric acid
Skeletal formula of 3-hydroxyisobutyric acid

The isomers are distinguished by the distance between the two functional groups and the branching.

  • alpha-Hydroxybutyric acid (2-hydroxybutyric acid)
  • beta-Hydroxybutyric acid (3-hydroxybutyric acid)
  • gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid (4-hydroxybutyric acid, GHB)
  • 2-hydroxyisobutyric acid
  • 3-hydroxyisobutyric acid

See also
  • beta-Hydroxy beta-methylbutyric acid
  • Sodium oxybate

References
  1. Miltenberger, Karlheinz (2000). "Hydroxycarboxylic Acids, Aliphatic". Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry. Weinheim: Wiley-VCH. doi:10.1002/14356007.a13_507. ISBN 3527306730.
  • Hydroxybutyrates at the U.S. 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.