Lipids

Question

In biology, lipids comprise a group of naturally occurring molecules that include fats, waxes, sterols, fat-soluble vitamins (such as vitamins A, D, E, and K), monoglycerides, diglycerides, triglycerides, phospholipids, and others. The main biological functions of lipids include storing energy, signaling, and acting as structural components of cell membranes. Lipids have applications in the cosmetic and food industries as well as in nanotechnology.

Scientists may broadly define lipids as hydrophobic or amphiphilic small molecules; the amphiphilic nature of some lipids allows them to form structures such as vesicles, multilamellar/unilamellar liposomes, or membranes in an aqueous environment. Biological lipids originate entirely or in part from two distinct types of biochemical subunits or "building-blocks": ketoacyl and isoprene groups. Using this approach, lipids may be divided into eight categories: fatty acids, glycerolipids, glycerophospholipids, sphingolipids, saccharolipids, and polyketides (derived from condensation of ketoacyl subunits); and sterol lipids and prenol lipids (derived from condensation of isoprene subunits).

Although the term lipid is sometimes used as a synonym for fats, fats are a subgroup of lipids called triglycerides. Lipids also encompass molecules such as fatty acids and their derivatives (including tri-, di-, monoglycerides, and phospholipids), as well as other sterol-containing metabolites such as cholesterol. Although humans and other mammals use various biosynthetic pathways both to break down and to synthesize lipids, some essential lipids cannot be made this way and must be obtained from the diet.

• Emulsion test
• Lipid microdomain
• Fats
• Lipid signaling
• Lipidomics
• Protein-lipid interaction
• Phenolic lipids, a class of natural products composed of long aliphatic chains and phenolic rings that occur in plants, fungi and bacteria

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• List of lipid-related web sites
• Nature Lipidomics Gateway – Round-up and summaries of recent lipid research
• Lipid Library – General reference on lipid chemistry and biochemistry
• Cyberlipid.org – Resources and history for lipids.
• Molecular Computer Simulations – Modeling of Lipid Membranes
• Lipids, Membranes and Vesicle Trafficking – The Virtual Library of Biochemistry and Cell Biology

• IUPAC nomenclature of lipids
• IUPAC glossary entry for the lipid class of molecules

• LIPID MAPS – Comprehensive lipid and lipid-associated gene/protein databases.
• LipidBank – Japanese database of lipids and related properties, spectral data and references.

• ApolloLipids – Provides dyslipidemia and cardiovascular disease prevention and treatment information as well as continuing medical education programs
• National Lipid Association – Professional medical education organization for health care professionals who seek to prevent morbidity and mortality stemming from dyslipidemias and other cholesterol-related disorders.

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Wikipedia