Tags: Chemical Compound, Chemical Substance.
N-Glycolylneuraminic acid (Neu5Gc) is a sialic acid molecule found in most mammals. Humans cannot synthesize Neu5Gc because the human gene CMAH is irreversibly mutated though it is found in apes. It is absent in human tissues because of inactivation of gene encoding CMP-N-acetylneuraminic acid hydroxylase. The gene CMAH encodes for CMP-N-acetylneuraminic acid hydroxylase which is the enzyme responsible for CMP-Neu5Gc from CMP-N-acetylneuraminic (CMP-Neu5Ac) acid.
