Palmitoleic Acid

Aging
In the April 2001 issue of the Journal of Investigative Dermatology, Shinichiro Haze et al. published an article suggesting that omega-7 unsaturated fatty acids, such as palmitoleic acid and vaccenic acid found on the skin surface were oxidatively decomposed to 2-nonenal, which may be the cause of the phenomenon commonly known as old person smell.[4]

A scientist in Japan, Shoji Nakamura is devising products for a cosmetic line to meet the market.[5] He says, "Over time, this fatty acid is broken down by bacteria inhabiting the skin or by lipid peroxides (which are present in larger quantities in older people), producing a substance called nonenal that 'has an unpleasant... smell... closely approximating... that of old books'."


[link to en.wikipedia.org]