Dr.

Asma Umar
 Heterogeneous groups of compounds made
up of fatty acids, alcohols and may contain
other compounds. Oil, wax, steroids are
related physically more
 Insoluble in water
 Soluble in non polar solvents e.g., ether and
chloroform
 Are high energy dietary constitute. Lipids
yield more calories (9C/gm) as compared
with carbohydrates (4C/gm)
 Lipoproteins and phospholipids are important
constituent of the many natural membranes,
cell wall, mitochondria
 Lipoproteins are the carrier of cholesterol,
triglycerides and phospholipids
 Nervous tissue is rich in lipids, so lipids are
essential for its proper functioning
 Essential fatty acids (EFA) which can not be
synthesized in our body
 Only two known essential fatty acids are
alpha Linolenic acid (ALA)( omega three fatty
acid) Linolenic acid( omega 6 fatty acid
 Omega 3 fatty acid also called omega 3 oils
are polyunsaturated fatty acids.
 Widely distributed in nature, important
constitute of animal lipid metabolism and
vital constitute of human diet
 The omega 3 fatty acids include alpha
Linolenic acid (ALA), Eicosapentaenoic acid(
EPA) and Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA)
 ALA is mainly found in plants such as
flaxseed, soybean and canola oil
 Omega 3 fatty acids found in cold water fish,
salmon, sardine, tuna, mackerel and herring.
 In a meta analysis in 2018 it was concluded that
Dietary supplementation of long chain ω3 fatty
acids greater than one gram daily for at least a
year may have beneficial effects in chronic
diseases like CVA, RA and dementia.
 Moderate high quality evidence from 2020
Cochrane systematic review has shown that EPA
and DHA found in omega 3 fatty acids do not
improve mortality or Cardiovascular events
 However it reduces heart rate and normalize
blood pressure and decrease the varicose veins
risk
 Omega 3 fatty acids reduces waist and
weight
 It also helps to decrease fats in the liver
 It also support brain development in infants
 Omega 6 fatty acids are polyunsaturated fatty
acids having carbon-carbon double bond at
position 6 counting from terminal methyl end
 Examples are canola oil, sunflower oil, soya bean
oil, walnut oil and corn oil
 Omega 6 fatty acids play a vital role in brain
development
 It is an essential fatty acid, so we have to take it
in our diet
 They mainly provide energy, it contains Linoleic
acid which is converted into archidonic acid (AA)
 Fat is stored in adipose tissue to an unlimited
amount and it acts as an thermal insulator
 Electric insulator in myelinated nerve fibers
and help in rapid propagation of nerve
signals
 Transported in blood in combination with
proteins as lipoproteins
 Understanding biochemistry of lipids is the
basis of understanding certain major diseases
like DM, obesity and atherosclerosis
 These are aliphatic mono carboxylic acid
made up of hydrocarbon chains
a) They are major component of lipids
b) They are made up of not less than 2
carbon atoms
c) Chain length of lipid forming fatty acids
ranges from 4-24 carbon atoms
d) Neutral fats contain even number of
carbon atoms.
 Saturated fatty acids

a) These fatty acids do not contain any

double bonds e.g., acetic acid, butyric acid,
palmitic acid, arachidic acid

b) saturated fatty acids below 8 carbon in

length are liquid at room temperature
 Unsaturated fatty acids
Fatty acids having double bond
a) Monounsaturated fatty acids
Having only one double bond i.e., Oleic acid

b) Polyunsaturated fatty acids

Having more than one double bond i.e., Linoleic acid,
arachidonic acid
Also known as essential fatty acids because they are not
synthesized in the body
Oils contain significant quantity of polyunsaturated fatty
acids e.g., corn oil, wheat germ oil, soya bean and peanut
oil
Lack of essential fatty acids leads to growth retardation, skin
lesions, fatty liver and hypercholesterolemia
 Three fatty acid including Linoleic acid,
Linolenic acid and arachidonic acid are EFA.
 Linoleic acid is most important as
arachidonic acid is also synthesized from
Linoleic acid by three stage reaction
 Biologically arachidonic acid is most
important as prostaglandins and leukotrienes
are synthesized from it
Eicosanoids
 These are derived from 20 carbon (Eicosa) polyenoic
acid comprising of prostanoids, leukotrienes (LTs),
lipoxin (LXs)
 Prostanoids include prostaglandins (PGs),
prostacyclins (PGIs) and thromboxane (TXs)

Prostaglandins
 These are present in every mammalian tissue
 Act as local hormone
 Produced in vivo by cyclization of eicosanoic
polyunsaturated fatty acid into cyclopentane ring
 Presence of double bonds in side chains give rise to
PG1, PG2 and PG3
 Six prostaglandins of PGE and PGF series are
primary PGs
 A new type isolated from seminal plasma
called PG x
 These are synthesized aerobically from
polyunsaturated fatty acid arachidonic acid with
the help of multi enzyme system (PGH synthase)
 Trauma, hypoxia, angiotensin II, bradykinin, TSH,
Growth stimulating hormone
 These are produced in minute amount and not
stored in the body
 These are rapidly removed from circulation and
metabolized in liver, lung and brain
 Prostaglandins act on the specific receptors on
the target cell, activate second messenger (c
AMP or c GMP) which then mediate biological
effect
 Act as a potent vasodilator (PGE and PGA)
 Increase capillary permeability (PGE1, E2 and
F2α
 Inhibit platelets aggregation (PGE1), used
for platelet storage for therapeutic
transfusions
 Also inhibit gastric secretions (PGE1, E2 and
A1), useful in gastric ulcers
 Increases intestinal mucus secretion
 Increase contraction of GIT smooth muscles
from stomach to colon (PGE and F)
 Prostaglandins relaxes bronchial and tracheal
smooth muscles (PGE1, E2) used for status
asthamaticus
 Used for induction and augmentation of labor
(PGE1, E2 and F2α
 Similarly a related product thromboxane,
cyclopentane ring is interrupted with oxygen
 Attachment of substitutes groups at different
positions categorize them as TXA1 and TXB2
 PGE 2 is formed by the attachment of keto
group to the 9th position carbon while PGF is
formed by attachment of hydroxyl group to
the same position
 Genevan system in which saturated fatty
acids ends with the anoic that is octanoic
(C8)
 Unsaturated fatty acids ends with enoic that
is octadecenoic acid ( oelic acid C 18)
 Carbon atom are numbered from carboxylic
carbon as C1, then adjacent as C2, C3 and
C4.
 Also named as α, β and gamma, while
terminal methyl carbon is known as ω or n
carbon
Δ means presence of double bonds
 Δ9 means double bond at C 9
 ω 9 means presence of double bond at ninth
carbon from ω carbon
1) Melting point of fatty acids
Increases with increasing number of carbon atoms in
fatty acid chain in saturated fatty acids
While in unsaturated fatty acid, it increases with decrease
in number of double bond

2) Solubility of fatty acid increases with increase in

double bonds

3) Omega 3 fatty acids are anti inflammatory

and have health benefits e.g., Linolenic acid found in plant
and fish oil causes decreased synthesis of Prostaglandins
and Leukotrienes. Eicosapentanoic acid (EPA) and
Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in fish oil reduces
inflammation which causes swelling and pain.
1) Formation of salts
When boiled with alkali metals and alkaline Earth
metals
Salts of sodium and magnesium and potassium react
with fatty acids to form soaps
(Saponification)
Sodium and Potassium salts are soluble in water
while magnesium salts are insoluble

2) Formation of detergents
Reduction of carboxylic group of fatty acids
produces alkyl alcohols, It is further sulphated to
form alkyl sulfates, which acts as detergents
Detergents are good emulsifiers
Emulsifier
 Stabilize the mixture in emulsified form.
Method of mixing two liquids
 Latin words… to milk
 Composed of two parts Hydrophobic ( long
chain fatty acid)(Lipid phase) and
hydrophilic (Charged or uncharged)(water
phase)
 Ice cream, mayonnaise, cosmetics and
pharmaceuticals
 Hydrogenation
Addition of hydrogen to unsaturated double bond
present in oils and saturated fatty acids are
formed.
the liquid state oils are converted to solid state
i.e., Ghee
This is hardening of oils
 Halogenations
Fatty acids in free or combined forms react with
halogens at the double bond. This is used as
index of degree of unsaturation of an oil e.g.,
Iodide number
Halogenations:
 The iodide number equals the number of
mg of iodine required to saturate the fatty
acids present in 100mg of the oil or fat
 Oils rich in saturated fatty acids have low
iodide number while oils rich in
unsaturated fatty acids have higher iodide
number.
 The iodine replete healthy adult has about
15-20 mg of iodine, 70-80% of which is
contained in thyroid
 Ester formation
Fatty acids combine with alcohols to form ethers e.g.,
mono, di, triglycerides and other alcohols to form waxes
Triglycerides, esters formed from one molecule of glycerol
and three fatty acid molecules (carboxylic acid)

 Prostaglandins formation
Poly unsaturated 20 carbon fatty acids give rise to
Prostaglandins, prostacyclins ( inflammation, blood flow
clot formation and induction of labor) , thromboxane,
leukotrienes( bronchoconstriction, anti inflammatory
agent) and lipoxins
Oxidation
Unsaturated fatty acids are easily oxidized
than saturated fatty acids.
Spontaneous oxidation forms transparent,
chittinous coating on the surfaces where it is
applied e.g., paints
Rancidity
 Thedevelopment of unpleasant odor and
taste on aging is called rancidity.
 Hydrolysis, lipases, moisture and high
temperature stimulates this process
 Simple lipids
a) Fats
Esters of fatty acid with
glycerol e.g., oil, neutral fats,
monoacylyglycerol, diacylglycerol
and triacylglycerol
b) Wax
Esters of fatty acid with
alcohol other than glycerol i.e. high
molecular weight monohydric
alcohol
 Waxes are not easily hydrolyzed like TGs,
they are of no nutritional value
 Widely distributed in plants and animals
 Waxes on the surface of skin and hairs keep
their moisture and water repellent
 Waxes of the ears protect the lining of
tympanic membrane from foreign objects
 Bee wax forms honeycomb structure
 Lanolin is used as base of ointments and
creams
 Spermaceti used for candle making
 Types of waxes
a) True wax
Are simple lipids having esters of fatty acids
with acetyl alcohol or other high molecular weight
alcohols
e.g., myristic acid and palmitic acid (12-30 carbon
atoms), bee wax, lanolin and spermaceti( derived
from sperm whale) used in cosmetics and medicines.

b) Other waxes
Other than true waxes e.g., vitamin A and D and
esters of cholesterol
 Complex lipids
Esters of fatty acid which have an
alcohol, one or more fatty acid and other
groups
a) Glycolipids
b) Phospholipids
c) Gangliosides
d) Sulfolipids
e) Lipoproteins
f) Lipopolysaccrides
Glycolipids
 Widely distributed in the body especially in brain,
also called ceramide sugar. These are lipids with
attached carbohydrate
Fatty acids, sphingosine and mono or diasaccrides
 Galactosylceramide is major glycosphingolipid of
brain
 Present in outer leaflet of plasma membrane forming
cell surface carbohydrates also known as glycocalyx
 Glycocalyx enables certain bacteria to resist
phagocytic engulfment of bacteria by WBC, also
enables few bacteria to adhere to the rocks and
colonize
 Major animal glycolipid is Glycosphingolipid
containing C24 cerebronic acid
 Similarly glucosylceramide having glucose
head
 Glycolipids also determine blood group
antigen A and B and are antigenic
(carbohydrate portion)
 Play an important role in regulation of cell
interaction, adhesion, growth and
development
 Glycolipids also act as surface receptor in
cholera, tetanus toxin, microbes and virus
 Genetic disorder of inability to degrade
glycosphingolipid results in lysosomal
accumulation of these compounds
 Changes in carbohydrate portion of
glycosphingolipid leads to dysregulated
growth
 Gangliosides = glucosylceramide + sialic acid
 Gangliosides are present in gray matter of
the brain and function in cell to cell
recognition, communication, receptor for
hormones and bacterial toxins.
 Present in the ganglion cells of the CNS
particularly at nerve endings
 It is a derivative of ceramide oligosaccride
with one or two or more molecule of NANA
 The notation G is for ganglioside and
 M, D, T and Q represent number of sialic acid
 Simplest Gangliosides is GM3(simplest), GM1(
complex Gangliosides found in intestinal cell
membrane and attaches to cholera toxin)
 One molecule of glucose, one molecule of
Galactose and one NANA
 Additional letter or number indicate the
monomeric sequence of carbohydrate
attached to the ceramide
 In GM3, 3 is the number assigned on the basis
of chromatographic migration
 Present in spleen and RBC
 Help in tissue immunity
 Several lipid storage diseases accumulate
NANA containing lipids
 Sulfolipids =Ceramide+ Galactose + Sulphate
 Sugar molecule may be sulfated forming
sulfatids or sulfolipids
 Present in the white matter of the brain
Mostly derived from phosphatadic acid in which
phosphate is esterified with one OH group of
glycerol and other two OH are esterified with
long chain fatty acids (Glycerophospholipids)
Alcohol, fatty acid and phosphoric acid residue,
N containing bases
a) Glycerophospholipids
b) Sphingophospholipids ( sphingomyelin
=sphingosine + phosphate
Both of these have long chain fatty acids tails
and forms lipid bilayer in cell membrane
 Phosphatadic acid are important
intermediate in the formation of
triacylglycerol and phosphoglycerol, they are
not found in great quantity in tissue
 Comparison of Glycerophospholipids and
sphingolipids structures. Both types of
phospholipids have two hydrocarbon tails,
 Glycerophospholipids both are fatty acid chains
(a phosphatidylcholine with one saturated and
one unsaturated fatty acid is shown) and

 sphingolipids one is a fatty acid chain and the

other is part of the sphingosine moiety (a
sphingomyelin is shown). The two hydrophobic
tails and the polar head group are important for
the function of these phospholipids in the lipid
bilayer in cell membranes
 Phosphotidyl Inositol act as second
messenger, these are minor component of
cell membrane but play important role in
cell signaling and membrane trafficking
 Phosphatidylcholine (Lecithin) and
sphingomyelin are the major components of
membrane phospholipids
 It also represent large stores of choline,
acetylcholine (Nervous transmission)
 Dipalmitoyl lecithin act as surfactant,
present on the inner surface of the lung.
 Its absence from lungs causes respiratory
distress syndrome in infants
 Phosphotidylserine play an important role in
apoptosis
 Forms a lipoprotein complex, important part
of cell membrane, myelin sheath and cell
wall
 Important role in enzymatic phosphorylation
 Vital role in blood coagulation
 Conversion of prothrombin to thrombin,
activation of factor VIII
 Platelets provide source of PL
 Transport of lipids from liver
 Helpful in lipids absorption and transport
from intestine
 Amphipathic nature of phospholipids
 Hydrophilic heads and hydrophobic tails
 In water phospholipids arrange themselves in
the form of micelles
 Micelles are small in size
 e.g., Detergents act in the same way
 Unsaturated fatty acid tails are more kinked
giving more room for movement, hence fluidity
 Gases like oxygen, carbon dioxide and small
molecules can easily diffuse through this lipid
bilayer
 Permeability coefficient( Measure the ability of a
molecule to diffuse through permeability barrier
 Lipid soluble easily cross the cell membrane
 Non lipid soluble cross through channel proteins
 Water is easily permeable due to small size and
no charge
 Electrolytes like Na, K and Cl cross the lipid
bilayer more slowly
 Steroids readily cross the lipid bilayer
 Fluidity and phase changes depend upon lipid
content of lipid bilayer
 Orderly arrangement of hydrophilic heads
makes it rather stiff structure
 Increasing temperature converts orderly
arrangement to disorderly arrangement
 Fluidity effects its function of permeability
 Integral protein
 Peripheral proteins
 Example, Ankyrin is a peripheral protein and
it is bound to integral protein band 3 in the
erythrocyte membrane
 Spectrin is a cytoskeletel structure within
the erythrocyte which in turn bound to
Ankyrin which helps to maintain biconcave
shape of erythrocyte
 Non saponifiable fraction of lipids are called
steroids and sterol
 Sterols are alcohol derivatives of steroids
 Naturally occurring are cholesterol,
ergosterol, bile salts, male and female sex
hormones
 Cholesterol is best known for its association
with atherosclerosis
 It is precursor of large number of steroids
like bile acids, steroid hormones, sex
hormones and vitamin D
 Most abundant animal sterol
 Rich sources are brain, nerve tissue, adrenal cortex
and egg yolk
 Cholesterol is 27 carbon compound with four rings
and a side chain and synthesized from acetyl Co A
 A little more than half of cholesterol is synthesized in
the body while rest is obtained from diet
 About 10% is synthesized in liver and intestine( All
tissues containing nucleated cells are capable of
cholesterol synthesis which occurs in endoplasmic
reticulum)
 It is present in tissues and plasma either as free
cholesterol or combines with long chain fatty acids
 Increase in plasma cholesterol is caused by increased
uptake by lipoprotein receptors
 Liver plays a central role in the regulation of
cholesterol
 Cholesterol enters the liver through diet,
synthesis from extra hepatic tissue and from
liver itself
 It is eliminated unmodified in bile or in
combination as bile salts in the intestine
 Balance between influx and efflux is not
precise and slowly deposits in the blood
vessels, resulting in narrowing and
atherosclerosis
 Normal level of Cholesterol in the blood is 150-
250 mg/dl and its variations are good indicator
of diseases
 It is structural component of cell membrane
 It is not flexible and contributes to the rigidity of
cell and alters the fluidity of the cell membrane
 Precursor of bile acids, steroid hormones and
Vitamin D3
 Prevent water evaporation from skin
 Important component of plasma lipoproteins
 Ergosterol, main sterol of fungi and yeast, when
irradiated with ultra violet rays converted to
Vitamin D
 Most plasma cholesterol is an esterified form
(fatty acids attached at position no 3) which
makes them more hydrophobic than free
cholesterol
 Cholesterol esters are not normally found in
cell membrane
 Because of hydrophobicity, they need lipo
proteins for their transport or solubilized by
phospholipids or bile salts
 Ring structure can not be hydrolyzed into
carbon dioxide and water in humans
 Rather intact sterol nucleus is eliminated as
bile salts
 Small percentage is secreted into feces
 Watery mixture of organic and inorganic compounds
 Synthesized from cholesterol in liver
 Bile acids include cholic acid and chenodeoxycholic acid
 Activated by ATP and co enzymes and form conjugates with
Taurine and glycine
 Glycine forms amide with bile salts
 Similarly Taurine also forms amide with bile salts
 These salts combine with Na and K e.g., K/Na
glycochenodeoxcholic acid
 These are known as primary bile salts( best detergents and
emulsifiers)
 Synthesized in liver and released in bile from gall bladder into
second part of duodenum where they help in lipid digestion
 In intestine these are deconjugated by intestinal bacteria into
deoxycholic acid and cholic acid further into lithocholic acid(
secondary bile salts
 Bile salts are reabsorbed in ileum and return to liver to reuse
them
Cholelithiasis
 85 % are cholesterol stone, bile stone, mixed
 Due to increased secretion of cholesterol in
the bile
 Decreased bile acids
Thank you
 Clinicalutilization of Prostaglandins
 Functions of lipids