what are lipids used for in the human body?
829658
lipids are the same thing as fats... they are used as a last resort for energy
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All body processes require energy to run properly. When the body is expending more energy than it is taking in (e.g. when exercising), body cells rely on internally stored energy sources, like complex carbohydrates and fats, for energy. The first source the body turns to is glycogen, which is a complex carbohydrate created by the body. When that source is nearly depleted, the body begins lipolysis, the metabolism of fat for energy. In this process, fats, obtained from fat cells, are broken down into glycerol and fatty acids, which can be used to make energy. The primary by-products of metabolism are carbon dioxide and water; carbon dioxide is expelled through the respiratory system.\n\nFats are also secreted by the sebaceous glands (in the skin).
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Vitamins A, D, and E are lipids.  They are stored in your body fat and released on an "as needed" basis.  The B complex and C vitamins are water soluble and therefore need to be replenished on a daily basis.  All vitamins are used as your body requires so adsorption is independent of intake.
465257
Lipitor, for high cholesterol.
382617
bone marrow contains cholesterol. However, cholesterol is not a harmful fat.  All animal fat contains cholesterol, and our bodies need it to survive.  Your nerve cells are rapped in a form of cholesterol called mylin(sp?)that help your brain work properly.  Its only been in the past few years with all the dieting fads that cholesterol has been dubbed bad. Its not going to hurt anyone to eat a little fat.
603843
a phospholipid is a molecule that forms the basis of cell membranes. it is made up of glycerol undergoing condensation reaction with two fatty acids and 1 phosphate group. due to the phosphate group being charged it causes the phospholipid to have a polar and hydrophilic head and it also has a nonpolar and hydrophobic tail that is made up of hydrocarbons. it is the heads that face the inside and outside external environments in the cell membrane and shield the hydrophobic tails
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a fat molecule triacylglycerol
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Triglycerides play an important role in metabolism as energy sources. They contain a bit more than twice as much energy (9 kcal/g) as carbohydrates and proteins. In the intestine, triglycerides are split into glycerol and fatty acids (this process is called lipolysis) (with the help of lipases and bile secretions), which can then move into blood vessels. The triglycerides are rebuilt in the blood from their fragments and become constituents of lipoproteins. Various tissues can release the free fatty acids and take them up as a source of energy. Fat cells can synthesize and store triglycerides. When the body requires fatty acids as an energy source, the hormone glucagon signals the breakdown of the triglycerides by hormone-sensitive lipase to release free fatty acids.\n\nIn the human body, high levels of triglycerides in the bloodstream have been linked to atherosclerosis, and, by extension, the risk of heart disease and stroke. However, the negative impact of raised levels of triglycerides is lower than that of LDL-cholesterol. The risk can be partly accounted for a strong inverse relationship between triglyceride level and HDL-cholesterol level.\n\nOther diseases caused by high triglycerides include pancreatitis.
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Fish oil contain what are know as omega 3 fatty acids and are suposed to be good for your overall cholesterol status and may help to reduce the levels of other "bad" types of fat in the blood.  The bottom line, as for now, is that it can't hurt.
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That's pretty much the only way you can get lipids.  Lipids are fats, and the primary source of fat for most people is through their diet.  There may be other ways to get lipids, but I can't imagine them at the moment.
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Fat is normally thought of as triglycerides, like lard, formed in the body as a form of storage.  Any excess food whether carbohydrate or protein is converted to fat.  Cholesterol is a minor component of animal fats, and is present in all animal cells.
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Fats are also called triacylglycerols or lipids;\n\nthe structure is the result of an esterification reaction between one molecule of glycerol ( a tri-hydroxy alcohol ) and three molecules of fatty acid ( long-chain carboxylic acids ):\n\n R-OH + R-COOH --->  R-C(=O)OR + H20\n\nglycerol is H2C(OH)CH(OH)CH2OH;  the fatty acids are typically stearic ( C18H36O2 ) or oleic ( C18H34O2 ) acids.\n\nThe bonds holding the fatty acids to the glycerol part are called ester bonds (-C(=O)-O-C-)
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apolipoproteins\n\nLipids (triglyceride (TG), cholesterol (Chol), phospholipids (PL), cholesteryl esters (CE)) are insoluble in plasma. These lipids combine with special proteins called apoproteins - apolipoproteins - to form lipoproteins and this process solubilises lipids in plasma. Therefore, the lipoproteins provide a transport system for lipids. Apoproteins are important not only in maintaining the structural integrity of lipoproteins and thereby facilitating the solubilisation of lipids, but they also play an important role in lipoprotein receptor recognition and regulation of certain enzymes in lipoprotein metabolism.
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as for the little i know its the energy molecule. cells use it to perform other tasks. i think one is to take in insulin and to operate some voltage gated channels. and i believe it is used in muscle fibers to retract.
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that's a lot to answer so i'm not putting all the long details here. go to this link: http://www.answers.com/lipids .\n\nthat site is actually really helpful when you need to find out anything.
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Hi Danette.  This would be a false statement.  Examples of lipids that do not contain fatty acids include cholesterol and vitamin E.  Fatty acids are lipids, but not all lipids are fatty acids.
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They are called "free" due to the fact that commonly fatty acids in the body are usually attached to a molecule called "glycerol" and they form tricylglycerides or triglycerides (3 fatty acids and 1 glycerol), which are the main components of cell membrane. Free fatty acids are the raw material for triglycerides and are secluded in special reservoir cells called "adipocytes" only there you find "free" fatty acids due to the fact that anywhere else in the body the aqueous environment cannot tolerate hydrophobic free fatty acids because they could disrupt cell membrane stability.