Question

What are the general structures of neutral fats, phospholipids, and steroids? give one or two important uses of each of these lipid types in the body?

Answer 1

Neutral fats: These are known as true fats which is produced by the dehydration synthesis of more or more fatty acid with glycerol.

They are usually found in the thigh and torso region of the body and helps in insulation of the body and helps in maintaining the normal temperature of the body.

Phospholipids: They usually consists of one head and one tail. The head region is hydrophillic and the tail region is hydrophobic. It is an important component of the cell membrane.

Steroids: They are mostly bonded in the form of 4 rings in a specific configuration. This molecule is an important signaling molecule and also helps in membrane fluidity.

Answer 2

The general structures and uses of each of the given lipids are listed below.

(1) neutral fats - composed of fatty acid hydrocarbon chains that is bonded to a single molecule of glycerol. One of the most important uses of the neutral fat is that it is used to insulate the body organs.

(2) phospholipids - composed of two fatty acid "tails" and a "head". The tails are hydrophobic while the head is hydrophilic. One of the most important uses of this lipid is that this is the major component of the cell membrane.

(3) steroids - composed of 17 carbon atoms. These atoms are bonded in four rings which are fused. Steroids can be used to treat inflammatory conditions.