Page 111 - General Biochemistry

1) Simple lipids: They are esters of FA with various alcohols, according to the
type of alcohol they are sub classified into

✓ neutral fats or oil (Alcohol is GLYCEROL)
EX: Fats and oils are also called triglycerides (esters of glycerol+ 3 FA)

✓ waxes (Alcohol is other than glycerol), on hydrolysis of waxes it gives one
fatty acid + alcohol

EX: bees wax

2) Complex lipids: on hydrolysis it gives FA with alcohol and containing
additional [prosthetic] groups.

It is Sub classified according to the type of prosthetic group into:
✓ Phospholipids :it consists of FA + ALCOHOL + PHOSPHATE, They

frequently have nitrogen containing bases
Phospholipids may be classified on the basis of the type of alcohol present into

a) Glycerophospholipids
Where the Alcohol is GLYCEROL, ex: plasmalogens, cardiolipins

b) Spingophospholipids
Where the Alcohol is SPHINGOSINE ex: sphingomyelins
✓ Glycolipids: they contains FA + ALCOHOL[SPHINGOSINE]

+CARBOHYDRATE WITH NITROGEN BASE, They do not contain
phosphate group. Ex: Cerebrosides and Gangliosides

✓ Lipoproteins: they are Lipids with prosthetic group PROTEIN
Ex: Chylomicrons, VLDL, LDL, HDL

3) Derived lipids: they are derived from lipids (simple or complex) or
precursors of lipids. Ex: fatty acids, steroids, cholesterol, vitamin A and D

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