Background information
Acyl-coenzyme A synthetases (ACSs) are a large family of related enzymes known to catalyze the fundamental initial reaction in fatty acid metabolism. The ACS family is roughly characterized based on fatty acid chain length preference amongst different members. The nomenclature in the ACS family reflects this relationship and includes short-chain ACS (ACSS), medium-chain ACS (ACSM), long-chain ACS (ACSL) and very long-chain ACS (ACSVL). ACSVL family members are capable of activating both long (LCFAs) and very long-chain fatty acids (VLCFAs). There are six members of the human ACSVL subfamily, which have been described as solute carrier family 27A (SLC27A) gene products. They represent a group of evolutionarily conserved fatty acid transport proteins (FATPs) recognized for their role in facilitating translocation of long-chain fatty acids across the plasma membrane. The family nomenclature has recently been unified with their respective acyl-CoA synthetase family designations: ACSVL1 (FATP2), ACSVL2 (FATP6), ACSVL3 (FATP3), ACSVL4 (FATP1), ACSVL5 (FATP4) and ACSVL6 (FATP5). ACSVLs have unique expression patterns and are found in major organs of fatty acid metabolism, such as adipose tissue, liver, heart and kidney. ACSVL2 is a 619 amino acid multi-pass membrane protein. Encoded by a gene that maps to human chromosome 5q23.3, ACSVL2 may function as the predominant fatty acid protein transporter in heart.
