Description |
In the human body, high levels of triglyceride(s) in the blood-stream have been linked to atherosclerosis, and, by extension, the risk of heart disease and stroke. However, the negative impact of raised levels of triglyceride(s) is lower than that of LDL:HDL ratios. The risk can be partly accounted for by a strong inverse relationship between triglyceride level and HDL-cholesterol level. Another disease caused by high triglyceride(s) is pancreatitis. Purified Triglyceride(s) from egg yolk is routinely used in lipid and chemistry controls. The triglycerides isolated from egg yolk lipids were subjected to stereospecific analysis. A very high degree of asymmetry between positions 1 and 3 was found. Palmitic acid constituted over 70% of the fatty acids in position 1. Position 2 was occupied largely by oleic and linoleic acids and position 3 by oleic acid and a comparatively small amount of saturated fatty acids. The triglycerides were also separated according to degree of unsaturation by argentation chromatography and each fraction subjected to the stereospecific analysis procedure. Good agreement was found between the proportions of the various molecular species obtained in this way and those predicted assuming a 1-random, 2-random, 3-random arrangement of fatty acids in the intact triglycerides. There was evidence for some selectivity in the utilization of fatty acids of different chain lengths in certain of the species, however. No simple biosynthetic relationship was apparent between the structure of the egg yolk triglycerides and the structures of egg phosphatidyl choline and ethanolamine reported by others, although there are some similarities in the arrangement of fatty acids in the triglycerides and phosphatidyl choline. |