Influence of fatty acids on the binding of calcium to human serum albumin.

Fatty acids have been shown to influence the binding of calcium to human serum albumin. The calcium binding to albumin was enhanced when long-chain fatty acids were added to albumin prepared by two different methods and decreased when fatty acids were removed from albumin. Palmitic, stearic and oleic acids all exhibited this phenomenon. The effects of long-chain fatty acids on the binding of calcium to albumin in vitro appears to be of sufficient magnitude to have in vivo implications in calcium homeostasis and in determining the ratio of free to total calcium. Preliminary in vivo experiments have confirmed the calcium binding of fatty acids in serum and suggest a physiological role for this phenomena.