Lipid metabolism

Lipid metabolism is the synthesis, breakdown, and modification of fats and other lipids in organisms. It supplies energy, builds cell membranes, and produces signaling molecules.

Fatty acid synthesis: The cellular pathway that builds fatty acids from acetyl-CoA using ATP and reducing power. It makes fatty-acid chains that can be stored as fat or incorporated into complex lipids.
Fatty acid: A carboxylic acid with a hydrocarbon chain, used in energy storage, membranes, and signaling. Fatty acids are both products and substrates throughout lipid metabolism.
Ketogenesis: The production of ketone bodies from acetyl-CoA, mainly in liver mitochondria during low carbohydrate availability. It converts fatty-acid-derived acetyl-CoA into fuels usable by other organs.
Atherosclerosis: A chronic disease in which lipid-rich plaques form within arterial walls. Disturbed lipoprotein handling can promote lipid accumulation in artery walls.
Beta oxidation: A pathway that shortens fatty acids into acetyl-CoA units while generating electron carriers. It breaks down fatty acids to supply substrates and reducing power for energy production.
Glycerol: A three-carbon alcohol that forms the backbone of triacylglycerols and many phospholipids. Its backbone joins fatty acids into major storage and membrane lipids.
Cholesterol biosynthesis: The multistep pathway that synthesizes cholesterol from acetyl-CoA. It shows how lipid metabolism supplies a membrane component and precursor for steroid hormones.
Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease: A spectrum of liver disorders involving excess hepatic fat in people without substantial alcohol use. An imbalance between lipid input, synthesis, oxidation, and export can cause hepatic fat buildup.
Lipolysis: The enzymatic hydrolysis of stored triacylglycerols into fatty acids and glycerol. It mobilizes stored fat when tissues need circulating fuel.
Coenzyme A: A cofactor that carries acyl groups in metabolic reactions as thioesters. Fatty-acid synthesis and breakdown handle carbon largely through acyl-CoA intermediates.

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