Submitted on November 24, 2008
Revised on December 8, 2008
Accepted on December 17, 2008
Prostanoids in health and disease
Emer M. Smyth, Tilo Grosser, Miao Wang, Ying Yu, and Garret A. FitzGerald
Institute for Translational Medicine and Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104
Corresponding Author: garret{at}exchange.upenn.edu
The prostanoids are a family of lipid mediators generated by the action of cyclooxygenase on a 20-carbon unsaturated fatty acid, arachidonic acid. Prostanoids are generated widely in response to diverse stimuli and, acting in a paracrine or autocrine manner, play important roles in normal physiology and disease. This review summarizes the current knowledge on prostanoid generation and the roles of individual mediators, their biosynthetic pathways and their receptors, in health and disease.