Lecture Notes: Lipids and Inflammation

Essential Fats in Our Diet

Essential Fats: Unsaturated fats are essential.
- Sources: Primarily plants (grains, vegetables, fruits).
- Non-Essential: Saturated fats are not needed.

Category: Part of a larger group called isoprostanes.
Structure: Two long fatty acids linked together.
History: Discovered in the prostate gland in the 1960s.
Function:
- Released from injured cells.
- Involved in the inflammatory response (redness, warmth, swelling, pain).
Examples:
- Physical injury (e.g., hammering a thumb) leads to inflammation.
- Infections (e.g., strep throat) cause tissue inflammation.
Chronic Inflammation:
- Conditions like arthritis (osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, gouty arthritis).
- Treated with NSAIDs (Nonsteroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs) like aspirin, ibuprofen.

Structure: Glycerol molecule with 1, 2, or 3 fatty acids attached.
Storage:
- Fatty acids stored in fat cells as triglycerides.
- Triglycerides can be broken down for energy via hydrolysis.

Structure:
- Similar to triglycerides but with a phosphate group instead of a third fatty acid.
- Has a hydrophilic (water-loving) portion and hydrophobic (water-fearing) portion.
Function:
- Make up cell membranes.
- Amphipathic nature (having both hydrophilic and hydrophobic properties).

Type of Lipid
Parent Compound: Cholesterol.
Common Misconception: Often thought of only as steroid hormones but includes cholesterol.

The lecture covered the importance of unsaturated fats, the role of prostaglandins in inflammation, various types of lipids, and their functions in the body.
Understanding of prostaglandins and inflammation processes is crucial, including treatment options like NSAIDs.
Detailed explanation of lipid storage, structure, and functions in physiology.

These notes summarize the key points from the lecture on lipids, focusing on their roles in diet, cellular processes, and inflammation.