Triglyceride

A triglyceride is a molecule in which glycerol is esterified to three fatty acids. It is the main form of stored fat in many organisms.

Glycerol: A three-carbon alcohol with three hydroxyl groups that forms the backbone of triglycerides and other lipids. Its three hydroxyl groups provide the attachment points for the fatty acids.
Triacylglycerol biosynthesis: The cellular pathway that assembles triglycerides from glycerol-derived intermediates and fatty acyl groups. This pathway forms the molecule by attaching three fatty-acid-derived groups to glycerol.
Serum triglycerides: The concentration of triglycerides in the blood, mostly carried within lipoprotein particles. This clinical measurement tracks triglyceride transport in circulation.
Phospholipid: A lipid with a phosphate-containing head group and hydrophobic tails, often forming cell-membrane bilayers. Unlike triglycerides, phospholipids are amphipathic and form membrane structures.
Fatty acid: A molecule with a carboxyl group attached to a hydrocarbon chain, which may be saturated or unsaturated. Three fatty acids supply the hydrocarbon chains in each triglyceride.
Lipolysis: The enzymatic breakdown of stored triglycerides into fatty acids and glycerol or related intermediates. Lipolysis reverses triglyceride storage by releasing fuel from fat reserves.
Hypertriglyceridemia: An abnormally high concentration of triglycerides in the blood. Elevated blood triglycerides can accompany metabolic disease and raise pancreatitis risk.
Steroid: A lipid characterized by four fused carbon rings, including cholesterol and steroid hormones. Steroids have a ring-based structure rather than glycerol esterified to three fatty acids.
Ester bond: A covalent bond formed between a carboxylic acid group and an alcohol group, typically releasing water. Each of the three fatty acids joins glycerol through an ester bond.
Lipoprotein lipase: An enzyme that hydrolyzes triglycerides carried in circulating lipoproteins. It makes fatty acids from blood-borne triglycerides available to tissues.

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