De novo fatty acid synthesis occurs in the liver, kidneys, and adipose tissue. It is a multi-step process that converts acetyl-CoA into palmitate using acetyl-CoA, ATP, NADPH, manganese, and biotin. The first step is transporting acetyl-CoA from the mitochondria to the cytosol. Fatty acid synthase, a large enzyme complex, then catalyzes the reactions that elongate the carbon chain by adding two carbon units from malonyl-CoA in each cycle until palmitate is produced. While most fatty acids come from diet, de novo synthesis provides lipids for certain tissues.