Additional info: |
FAAH catalyzes the hydrolysis of biologically significant fatty acid amides. Characterization of FAAH, its substrates, and inhibitors have helped to partially elucidate molecular regulation of sleep, nociception, and cancer. FAAH is an intracellular enzyme linked to the plasma-membrane via its N-terminal domain. The purified enzyme from rat has an estimated molecular mass of 63,000. Cloning and characterization of porcine, mouse, and human FAAH indicate highly conserved homology with the rat sequence. Northern and immunoblot analyses reveals that FAAH exists in a wide variety of tissues and is particularly abundant in liver, pancreas, brain, testes, uterus, small intestine, and ocular tissue. |