This review is about the role of arachidonic acid (ArA) in foetal and early growth and development. In 1975 and ‘76, we reported the preferential incorporation of ArA into the developing brain of rat pups, its conservation as a principal component in the brains of 32 mammalian species and the high proportion delivered by the human placenta for foetal nutrition, compared to its parent linoleic acid (LA). ArA is quantitatively the principal acyl component of membrane lipids from foetal red cells, mononuclear cells, astrocytes, endothelium, and placenta. Functionally, we present evidence that ArA, but not DHA, relaxes the foetal mesenteric arteries. The placenta biomagnifies ArA, doubling the proportion of the maternal level in cord blood. The proportions of ArA and its allies (di-homo-gamma-linolenic acid (DGLA), adrenic acid and ω6 docosapentaenoic acid) are similar or higher than the total of ω3 fatty acids in human milk, maintaining the abundant supply to the developing infant. Despite the evidence of the importance of ArA, the European Food Standard Agency, in 2014 rejected the joint FAO and WHO recommendation on the inclusion of ArA in infant formula, although they recommended DHA. The almost universal dominance of ArA in the membrane phosphoglycerides during human organogenesis and prenatal growth suggests that the importance of ArA and its allies in reproductive biology needs to be re-evaluated urgently.

这篇综述是关于花生四烯酸 (ArA) 在胎儿和早期生长发育中的作用。1975 年和 76 年，我们报道了 ArA 优先掺入正在发育的幼鼠大脑中，它作为 32 种哺乳动物大脑中的主要成分保存下来，并且与 ArA 相比，人类胎盘为胎儿营养提供的比例很高。母体亚油酸（LA）。ArA 是胎儿红细胞、单核细胞、星形胶质细胞、内皮细胞和胎盘膜脂的主要酰基成分。从功能上来说，我们提供的证据表明，ArA（而非 DHA）可以放松胎儿肠系膜动脉。胎盘可生物放大 ArA，使脐带血中母体水平的比例加倍。ArA 及其盟友（二高γ-亚麻酸 (DGLA)、肾上腺酸和 ω6 二十二碳五烯酸）的比例与母乳中 ω3 脂肪酸总量相似或更高，维持发育中婴儿的充足供应。尽管有证据表明 ArA 的重要性，但欧洲食品标准局在 2014 年拒绝了粮农组织和世界卫生组织关于在婴儿配方奶粉中添加 ArA 的联合建议，尽管他们推荐使用 DHA。在人类器官发生和产前生长过程中，ArA 在膜磷酸甘油酯中几乎普遍占据主导地位，这表明 ArA 及其盟友在生殖生物学中的重要性需要紧急重新评估。