 Diverse hydrophobic molecules which are insoluble in

water (and other polar molecules) and soluble in non-

polar molecules like ether and chloroform
 Made of C,H,O

 No general formula.

 C:O ratio is very high in C

 Also called ‘fuel foods’

 Pertains to all fats and oils

 Lipids contain a lot of calories in a small space.
 Since Lipids are generally insoluble in polar
substances such as water, they are stored in
special ways in you body's cells.
 Lipids can also function as structural components
in the cell.
 Phospholipids are the major building blocks of
cell membranes.
The image on the left
shows three different ways
to depict Phospholipids.
The glycerol portion of the
molecule is shown in red in
the Fisher drawing (atoms
represented by letters).
The two fatty acids are
below the red and the
phosphate group (with
some methyl and amino
decorations) is above.
This Phospholipid bilayer structure
forms the membrane that surrounds
each of your cells and plays an
important role in regulating cellular
function.
 Lipids are also used as hormones that play roles
in regulating our Physiology (metabolism).
 Most lipids are composed of some sort of fatty
acid arrangement.
 The fatty acids are composed of methylene (or
Methyl) groups, and are not water soluble.
 Testosterone is responsible for sexual maturation
at all stages of male development throughout life.
 Women also secrete small amounts of testosterone
from their ovaries.
 Synthetically, testosterone is prepared from
cholesterol, the molecules are fairly similar.

 Fatty acids are composed of
 a chain of methylene groups
 with a Carboxyl functional group at one end.

 The methyl chain is the fatty part,

 the Carboxyl, the acid.
 The fatty "tail" is non-polar (Hydrophobic) while the
Carboxyl "head" is a little polar (Hydrophillic).
 SATURATED FATTY ACIDS UNSATURATED FATTY ACIDS

 they have as many  with one or more double

hydrogens bonded to their bonds connecting their
carbons as possible carbons, hence fewer
hydrogens
Compare the fatty acid on the right to the one on the left. A double
bond connects the two, red Carbon atoms. Since Carbon forms
four bonds, these Carbon atoms are only bonded to one Hydrogen
each. This is not as many as the fatty acid above, so this fatty acid is
called unsaturated. (monounsaturated).
 Saturated Fatty Acids Unsaturated Fatty Acids

The double bond also gives unsaturated fatty acids a bend in the
methylene chain. This bend affects the chemical characteristics of
unsaturated fatty acids. The straighter, saturated Fatty Acids all
line-up very close together and stick to each other. These
interactions make them less fluid and more solid (more like Fat).
The bent unsaturated Fatty Acids can't get as close together, so
they don't stick as much. They are more fluid (more like Oil).
Triglycerides are Energy-
storage molecules.
They are formed by
connecting three fatty
acids (shown in black) to
the red part of the
molecule on the right,
Glycerol
. As you can imagine, the
three fatty acids together,
contain a lot of Energy
(aka Calories). Fat has a
lot of calories.
It is an important part of a
healthy body since cholesterol
is used as part of the cell
membranes, and also as part
of some hormones.