Dr David McGrath

Spine Physician

MB BS (Hons) FAFOM, RACP, FAFMM
Master of Pain Medicine

Fat Physiology

Bottom Line: Essential for understanding membrane health, cellular communication and energy regulation.

1. Structural Components of Membranes and Organelles
2. Fatty Energy Store (TG's)
3. Signal Chemicals (both within membranes and unattached)(steroid and non steroid)
4. Shingolipids (hydolysed to ceramide,sphingosine base) in GIT tract inhibit colon cancer.
5. Conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) reduces body fat, and breast cancer
6. Gamma- Linolenic Acid (GLA) destroys some brain tumour cells.
7. Oleic Acid exerts beneficial effects on thrombosis and atherosclerosos (C18 omega9)
8. Shingolipids very important in nervous tissue
9. Saturated fats reduce inflammatory responce to bacteria.

Major Structures
1. Saturated Fatty Acids (SFA)
2. Unsaturated fatty acids (poly PUFA, and mono , MUFA)
3. Long chain PUFA (LPUFA) contain more than 20 carbon atoms.

Attachments/Backbone	Glycerol	Sphingosine	Steroids
Fatty Acids	Mono/Di acylglycerides Tri/acylglycerides (TG's)	Sphingolipids	Cholesterol Esters (C.E)
Phosphate (plus choline or ROH)	Phospholipids (P.L's) Phoso-glycerides Glycero-phosphatides Glycero-phospholipids (membranes)	Sphingo/phospatides (sphingomyelins) Pho-sphingolipids (membranes)	-
Sulphuric Acid Esters	-	Sulfatides (Supluric acid esters of gangliosides)	-
Acetyl Group	-	Ceramides	-
Sugar (glucose, galactose)	Glycolipids	Glyco-sphingolipids Cerebrosides Gangliosides	-
Hydoxy Alcohols	-	-	Sterols Cholesterol
Carbonyl/Hydoxyl Alkyl Side Chains Position Double Bonds	-	-	HORMONES Progesterone Testosterone Estradiol Cholic Acids Vitamin D3 Cortisol

                                                        Eicosanoids
1. 18 carbon- polyunsaturated fat is elongated to 20 and desaturated even further.(2 more)
2. The fatty acids incorporate an oxygen atom (oxygenation) to very active signal chemicals.
    (Cyclic oxygenase COX enzyme)
3. Mutiple signal functions, including the inflammatory response.

EicosanoidsOrigin	Arachidonic Acid (A.A) C20 ,4 ,omega6	Eicos/pentaenoic Acid (EPA )C20, 5, omega 3	Tissue
Precursor Dietary	Linoleic Acid (LA) C18 ,2, omega6	Alpha Linolenic Acid (ALA) C18, 3, omega3
Prostacyclins (prostaglandins)	PGI2	PGI3	Endothelium
Thromboxanes	TXA2	TXA3	Platelet
Leukotrienes	LTB4	LTB4	Leukocytes

(to be continued)