Vitamin B5 Or Pantothenic Acid Requirement

By Author: Abinash Mallick
Total Articles: 21
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Pantothenic acid, also called pantothenate or vitamin B5 (a B vitamin), is a water-soluble vitamin. For many animals, pantothenic acid is an essential nutrient. Animals require pantothenic acid to synthesize coenzyme-A (CoA), as well as to synthesize and metabolize proteins, carbohydrates, and fats.

Pantothenic acid is the amide between pantoic acid and β-alanine. Its name derives from the Greek pantothen (πάντοθεν), meaning "from everywhere", and small quantities of pantothenic acid are found in nearly every food, with high amounts in whole-grain cereals, legumes, eggs, meat, royal jelly, avocado, and yogurt.[2] It is commonly found as its alcohol analog, the provitamin panthenol (pantothenol), and as calcium pantothenate. Pantothenic acid is an ingredient in some hair and skin care products.

Only the dextrorotatory (D) isomer of pantothenic acid possesses biologic activity.[5] The levorotatory (L) form may antagonize the effects of the dextrorotatory isomer.[6]

Pantothenic acid is used in the synthesis of coenzyme A (CoA). Coenzyme A may ...
... act as an acyl group carrier to form acetyl-CoA and other related compounds; this is a way to transport carbon atoms within the cell.[7] CoA is important in energy metabolism for pyruvate to enter the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA cycle) as acetyl-CoA, and for α-ketoglutarate to be transformed to succinyl-CoA in the cycle.[8] CoA is also important in the biosynthesis of many important compounds such as fatty acids, cholesterol, and acetylcholine.[8] CoA is incidentally also required in the formation of ACP,[9] which is also required for fatty acid synthesis in addition to CoA.[7]

Pantothenic acid in the form of CoA is also required for acylation and acetylation, which, for example, are involved in signal transduction and enzyme activation and deactivation, respectively.[10]

Since pantothenic acid participates in a wide array of key biological roles, it is essential to all forms of life.[11] As such, deficiencies in pantothenic acid may have numerous wide-ranging effects, as discussed below.

Small quantities of pantothenic acid are found in most foods.[12] The major food source of pantothenic acid is meat. The concentration found in animal muscle is about half that in human muscle.[13] Whole grains are another good source of the vitamin, but milling removes much of the pantothenic acid, as it is found in the outer layers of whole grains.[14] Vegetables, such as broccoli and avocados, also have an abundance.[15] In animal feeds, the most important sources are rice, wheat bran, cereal, alfalfa, peanut meal, molasses, yeasts, mushrooms and condensed fish solutions. The most significant sources of pantothenic acid in nature are coldwater fish ovaries and royal jelly.

The derivative of pantothenic acid, pantothenol (panthenol), is a more stable form of the vitamin and is often used as a source of the vitamin in multivitamin supplements.[16]:347 Another common supplemental form of the vitamin is calcium pantothenate. Calcium pantothenate is often used in dietary supplements because, as a salt, it is more stable than pantothenic acid in the digestive mentation may improve oxygen utilization efficiency and reduce lactic acid accumulation in athletes.

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