High incorporation of long-chain fatty acids contributes to the efficient production of acylated ghrelin in ghrelin-producing cells

The mechanisms for supplying octanoic acid for ghrelin acylation in X/A-like cells are incompletely understood. We found that long-chain fatty acids were incorporated at a higher rate in the ghrelin-producing cell line MGN3-1 than in MIN6 cells, in part due to higher expression level of long-chain fatty acyl-CoA synthetase family member 1 (Acsl1). Inhibition of ACSLs by triacsin C profoundly suppressed acylated ghrelin production. These results suggest that high incorporation of long-chain fatty acids into the ghrelin-producing cells plays a role in the supply of octanoic acid for ghrelin acylation.