The fatty-acid-binding proteins (FABPs) are a family of carrier protein

Carrier protein

Carrier proteins are proteins involved in the movement of ions, small molecules, or macromolecules, such as another protein, across a biological membrane. Carrier proteins are integral membrane proteins; that is they exist within and span the membrane across which they transport substances. The...

s for fatty acids and other lipophilic

Lipophilic

Lipophilicity, , refers to the ability of a chemical compound to dissolve in fats, oils, lipids, and non-polar solvents such as hexane or toluene. These non-polar solvents are themselves lipophilic — the axiom that like dissolves like generally holds true...

 substances such as eicosanoid

Eicosanoid

In biochemistry, eicosanoids are signaling molecules made by oxidation of twenty-carbon essential fatty acids, ....

s and retinoid

Retinoid

The retinoids are a class of chemical compounds that are related chemically to vitamin A. Retinoids are used in medicine, primarily due to the way they regulate epithelial cell growth....

s. These proteins are thought to facilitate the transfer of fatty acids between extra- and intracellular membranes

Cell membrane

The cell membrane or plasma membrane is a biological membrane that separates the interior of all cells from the outside environment. The cell membrane is selectively permeable to ions and organic molecules and controls the movement of substances in and out of cells. It basically protects the cell...

. Some family members are also believed to transport lipophilic molecules from outer cell membrane to certain intracellular receptor

Intracellular receptor

Intracellular receptors are receptors located inside the cell rather than on its cell membrane. Examples are the class of nuclear receptors located in the cell nucleus and the IP3 receptor located on the endoplasmic reticulum...

s such as PPAR.

Family members

Members of this family include:

Protein name	Gene	Tissue distribution	Comment
FABP 1 FABP1 Fatty acid-binding protein 1 also known as liver-type fatty acid-binding protein is a protein that in humans is encoded by the FABP1 gene.- Function :FABP1 encodes the fatty acid-binding protein found in liver...		liver
FABP 2 FABP2 Fatty acid-binding protein 2 also known as Intestinal-type fatty acid-binding protein is a protein that in humans is encoded by the FABP2 gene.- Function :...		intestinal
FABP 3		muscle and heart	mammary-derived growth inhibitor
FABP 4		adipocyte
FABP 5 FABP5 Fatty acid-binding protein, epidermal is a protein that in humans is encoded by the FABP5 gene.-Further reading:...		adipocyte	psoriasis-associated
FABP 6 FABP6 Fatty acid binding protein 6, ileal , also known as FABP6, is a protein which in humans is encoded by the FABP6 gene.- Function :...		ileal	gastrotropin
FABP 7 FABP7 Fatty acid binding protein 7, brain , is a human gene.FABP7 is expressed, during development, in radial glia by the activation of Notch receptors...		brain
FABP 8		peripheral nervous system	peripheral myelin protein 2
FABP 9		testis
FABP 11	fabp11	restricted to fishes
FABP 5-like 1
FABP 5-like 2
FABP 5-like 3
FABP 5-like 4
FABP 5-like 5
FABP 5-like 6
FABP 5-like 7