Lipids

Clarisse Kim C. Felisco, RMT, MSMT

Department of Medical Technology
School of Nursing and Allied Medical Sciences
LIPIDS
q Known as fats – provide a major way of
storing chemical energy and carbon atoms
in the body
q Surround and insulate vital body organs,
providing protection from mechanical shock
and prevents excessive loss of energy
q Organic compounds found in living organisms
that is insoluble or sparingly insoluble in
water but soluble in organic solvents
01
CLASSIFICATIONS
Classification According
To Function
a. Triglycerides – storage form of energy
b. Phospholipids & Cholesterol – structural components of
biomembranes
c. Steroid hormones – metabolic regulators
d. Amphipathic lipids – surfactants, detergents, emulsifying
agents
e. Electric insulators in neurons
f. Subcutaneous fats – provides insulation against changes in
external temperature
g. Give shape and contour to the body
h. Cushioning effect
i. Help in absorption of fat soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K)
Classification According To Structure
● Simple lipids – esters of fatty acids with glycerol or
higher alcohols
● Compound lipids – fatty acids esterified with alcohol and
contain other groups
○ phospholipids – contains phosphoric acid
○ Non-phosphorylated lipids
● Derived lipids – derived from lipids or precursors of
lipids
○ Fatty acids, steroids
02
FATTY ACIDS
Fatty Acids
● simple linear chain of C-H bonds that has a carboxyl
group (1C) and methyl group at the end
● Can be classified according to the number of Carbon
atoms
○ Long-chain fatty acids (C12 – C26)

○ Medium-chain fatty acids (C8 – C12)

○ Short-chain fatty acids (C4 – C6)

● R – CO – OH – general formula
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES: FATTY ACIDS
● Water solubility
○ Solubility decreases as carbon chain length increases
● Melting points
○ Strongly influenced by carbon chain length and number
of double bonds present
○ As carbon chain increases, melting point increases
○ The greater number of double bonds, less melting
points
 TYPES OF FATTY ACIDS
● Saturated Fatty Acids
● Unsaturated Fatty
Acids
○ Monounsaturated
fatty acid (MUFA)
○ Polyunsaturated
fatty acid (PUFA)
 SATURATED FATTY ACIDS
● Fatty acids
without double
bonds in the
entire
hydrocarbon
chain
● Ends with “-
anoic acid”
UNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS
● There is a
presence of
double bond in
the entire
hydrocarbon chain
● Ends with “-enoic
acid”
● Monounsaturated
● Polyunsaturated
 MONOUNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS
● Fatty acid with a hydrocarbon chain with one carbon-
carbon double bond
● Cis
● trans
POLYUNSATURATED
FATTY ACIDS
● Fatty acid with a
hydrocarbon chain with 2 or
more carbon-carbon double
bonds
03
SIMPLE LIPIDS
ENERGY-STORAGE LIPIDS:
TRIACYLGLYCEROLS
● simplest and most
abundant type of lipid
● Concentrated primarily in
adipocytes
● More efficient than
glycogen
○ Large quantities can be
packed into small volumes
TRIACYLGLYCEROL
● Lipid formed by esterification of 3
fatty acids to a glycerol molecule
● Triglyceride – old name
● Simple triacylglycerol – formed from
the esterification of glycerol with 3
identical fatty acid molecules
● Mixed triacylglycerol – formed from
the esterification of glycerol with
more than 1 kind of fatty acid
molecule
TRIACYLGLYCEROL
• An ester linkage of three fatty acids and
glycerol
• Each fatty acids tends to be different
thus producing many possible
structures for triglyceride
• Triglyceride with saturated fatty acids are
more tightly packed thus more solid
• Triglyceride with cis unsaturated fatty acids
are fluid in nature
04
COMPOUND LIPIDS
 Compound lipids
● Simple fatty acid with additional polar group
● Generally, amphipathic in nature
Phosphoglycerides
Phospholipids
Sphingomyelin
Cerebroside
Sulphatides
Compound Globosides
Glycolipids
Lipids
Gangliosides

Chylomicrons

VLDL
Lipoproteins
LDL

HDL
 Phospholipids
● Major component of cell
membrane (lipid bilayer)
● It has an alcoholic backbone
with 2 esterified fatty acids
(non-polar tail) and a phosphate
group (polar head)
● Amphipathic
○ Polar head – extend to the
exterior (aqueous This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY
environment)
○ Non-polar head – moves
toward the interior of the
membrane
 Phospholipids

Phosphoglycerides
o Found in large quantities in the brain and nerve tissues
o Nerve fiber insulator
o Marker for apoptosis

Sphingomyelin
o Most abundant lipid of the cell membrane (55-70%)
o Act as lung surfactant: dipalmitoyl lecithin
o Source of inositol triphosphate and diacylglycerol (generated from
phosphatidyl inositol biphosphate)
o Essential for lipoprotein structure
 Phosphoglycerides
● Phospholipid with glycerol backbone and an alcohol group
attached on the phosphate group
● Alcohol groups:
Ethanolamine [CH2OHCH2NH2] Cephalin

Choline [-CH2CH2-N+(CH3)3] Lecithin

Serine [CH2CHCOO—NH3] Phosphatidyl

serine
- Glycerol CH2OHCHOHCH2OH Phophatidyl
glycerol
Phosphatidyl
PHOSPHOLIPID inositol
Inositol
 Sphingomyelin
● Parts of Sphingomyelin structure
○ Sphingosine backbone
■ 18C chain with amino group on the second carbon (2C) and one
hydroxyl group each on the first (1C) and third carbon (3C)
○ Ceramide
■ A sphingosine backbone with a fatty acid chain on the amino group
○ Alcohol group
■ Sphingosine with a phosphate polar head, the alcohol group attached
on the phosphate group
 Glycolipids
● Same structure with sphingomyelin except that it contains
carbohydrate (polar group) on the first carbon atom of the
ceramide molecule and has no phosphate group
● Essential component of biological membrane with highest
concentration found in nerve tissue
● Depending on the nature of carbohydrate, 4 types can be
recognized:
○ Cerebroside 1 monosaccharide unit
○ Sulfatides
○ Globosides up to 7 monossacharides units
○ Gangliosides
 Lipoprotein
● Complex of lipid and protein
● Act as lipid transporter
● 4 major types:
Chylomicrons VLDL LDL HDL
Largest but the least Most atherogenic transporter Most abundant Smallest but the most
dense of triglyceride lipoprotein (50%) dense

90% Triglyceride 65% Triglyceride 50% Cholesterol ester 30% Phospholipid

1-2% Protein 16-22% Cholesterol ester 28-32% other lipids 15% Cholesterol ester
8-9% Other lipids 6-10% Protein 18-22% Protein 45-50% Protein

Transport exogenous Transport endogenous Transport dietary Transport excess

triglyceride to hepatic triglyceride to peripheral cholesterol to peripheral cholesterol to the liver
cells tissues tissue
05
DERIVED LIPIDS
 Steroids
● Complex lipid molecules consisting of 17 carbon atoms bonded in four
fused rings: 3 six-membered ring and a cyclopentane – collectively named
as steroid nucleus

● Steroids with alcohol derivative linked in the steroid nucleus is are termed
as sterol
● Cholesterol – the most common sterol in mammals
 Cholesterol
● Classified as lipid because they are hydrophobic and insoluble in water, but
do not resemble lipids in terms of structure
● May exist as free or esterified form
○ Free cholesterol is amphipathic as it has single polar group (hydroxyl group)
○ Esterified cholesterol (Cholesterol esters) is hydrophobic as fatty acid is esterified in
the hydroxyl group neutralizing the polarity of the molecule
● Precursor for 3 useful compounds: bile acid, steroid hormones, and vitamin
D.
● Essential component of all biological membrane
● Component of nerve fibers
 Cholesterol

● The nucleus is made up of three six-membered rings (A, B, C) and a cyclopentane (D)
collectively known as cyclopentanoperhydrophenanthrene
● Has single polar group and the rest are non-polar
● It has trans conformation in the hydrogen molecules of carbons 9, 8, and 14 resulting to
more rigid structure due to tight packing of molecules lessening molecular spaces
06
Fats and oils
 Fats Vs Oils: What Are The Differences?

FATS OILS
Triacylglycerol mixture that is solid Triacylglycerol mixture that is
or semi-solid at room temperature liquid at room temperature (25C)
(25C) Obtained from plant sources
Obtained from animal sources
07
DIGESTION AND
ABSORPTION OF FATS
 MOUTH
Water-based
salivary enzymes
will have little to
no effect on
triacylglycerol.
STOMACH
Small amount of
lipid digestion
occurs in the
stomach due to
gastric lipase.
 LIVER
Bile produced in the
liver, stored in the
gallbladder, is
released to the small
intestine to aid in
digestion and
absorption of lipids.
PANCREAS
Pancreatic lipase
produced in the
pancreas is released
into the small
intestine.
 SMALL
INTESTINE
Products from fat
digestion and bile
acids form micelle
and moves to the
microvilli to allow
lipids to diffuse into
mucosal cells.
 DIGESTION IN THE INTESTINES
● Emulsification – prerequisite for
digestion lipids
● Lipids are dispersed into smaller
droplets, surface tension is
reduced, surface area is increased
● Favored by:
○ Bile salts
○ Peristalsis
○ phospholipids
BILE SALTS
● Sodium glycocholate & Sodium taurocholate – lowers
surface tension
● Emulsify fat droplets and increases surface activity for
enhancement of enzyme activity
MICELLES
● Circular in structure
● Characterized by non-
polar tails situated inside
bile acids found outside
● Hydrophilic exterior and
hydrophobic interior
● Essential for absorption of
fat-soluble vitamins (A, D,
E, and K)
CHYLOMICRONS
● Absorbed triglycerides are transported
in the blood as chylomicrons
● Taken up by the adipose tissue and
liver
● During starvation states, triglycerides
in the adipose tissues are hydrolyzed
and produces free fatty acids
○ Transported through the help of
albumin This Photo by Unknown Author is
licensed under CC BY-SA-NC
10
KETONE BODIES
KETONE BODY
● One of the 3 substances produced from acetyl CoA when an excess
of acetyl CoA from fatty acid degradation accumulates because of
triglyceride-carbohydrate metabolic imbalances
○ Dietary intake high in fat and low in carbohydrates
○ Diabetic conditions
○ Prolonged fasting conditions
11
CHOLESTEROL
CHOLESTEROL
● Unsaturated steroid alcohol containing 4 rings with a single C-H
side chain tail attached to a fatty acid
● Amphipathic
● Found on the surface of lipid layers and synthesized in the liver
● Functions:
○ Precursor of 5 major classes of steroids: progestins, glucocorticoids,
mineralocorticoids, androgens and estrogens
○ Important constituent in the assembly of cell membranes and bile acids
FORMS OF CHOLESTEROL
● Free Cholesterol (FC)
○ Found in plasma, serum, and RBC
○ Produced from lysosomal hydrolysis
○ Found on the surface of lipopropteins
● Cholesterol Ester (CE)
○ Found in the plasma and serum
○ Cholesterol bound to fatty acid
12
EMULSIFICATION LIPIDS: BILE
ACIDS
EMULSIFIER
● A substance that can disperse and stabilize water-insoluble
substances as colloidal particles in an aqueous solution
● Bile acid – cholesterol derivative that functions as a lipid-
emulsifying agent in the aqueous environment of the digestive
tract
● Bile – fluid containing emulsifying agents that is secreted by the liver, stored
in the gallbladder and released into the intestine during digestion
13
STEROID HORMONES
Hormones
● biochemical substance produced by ductless glands that
has a messenger function
● Steroid hormone – hormone that is a cholesterol
derivative
○ sex hormone – controls reproduction and secondary
sex characteristics
○ adrenocorticoid hormones – regulation of biochemical

processes in the body

Sex Hormones
● Estrogens – synthesized in the ovaries and adrenal cortex
○ development of female secondary sex characteristics

at puberty and regulation of menstrual cycle

● Androgens – synthesized in the testes and adrenal cortex
● Progestins – synthesized in the ovaries and placenta
○ prepares the lining of the uterus
Adrenocorticoid Hormones
● Produced by the adrenal glands
● Mineralocorticoids – balance of Na and K ions
○ aldosterone

● Glucocorticoids – controls glucose metabolism

○ cortisol
14
EICOSANOIDS
EICOSANOIDS
● oxygenated C20 fatty acid derivative that functions as a
messenger lipid
● precursor: arachidonic acid
● Physiological effects
○ inflammatory response
○ production of pain and fever
○ regulation of blood pressure
○ induction of blood clotting
○ control of reproductive functions
○ regulation of sleep/wake cycle
3 Principal Types of Eicosanoids
● Prostaglandins
○ contains cyclopentane ring and oxygen-containing
functional groups
○ involved in many regulatory functions – increasing body
temp., inhibiting secretion of gastric juices, enhancing
inflammation response
● Thromboxanes
○ contains cyclic ether ring and oxygen-containing functional
groups
○ promotes formation of blood clots, produced by platelets
3 Principal Types of Eicosanoids
● Leukotrienes
○ contains 3 conjugated double bonds and hydroxy

group
○ found in leukocytes
15
BIOLOGICAL WAXES
Biological Waxes
● lipid that is a monoester of a long-chain fatty acid and long
chain alcohols
● protect hair and skin
● pharmaceutical, cosmetics, polishing industries (e.g.
Lanolin)
16
Saponifiable and
Nonsaponifiable Lipids
Saponification
● a hydrolysis reaction that is carried in basic solution
● Saponifiable lipid – lipid that undergoes hydrolysis in basic
solution to yield two or more smaller product molecules
● Nonsaponifiable lipid – does not undergo hydrolysis in
basic solution
 Thanks!
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