A lipoprotein is the particle transport cholesterol and triglycerides.
All plasma lipoproteins have the same general structure: a hydrophobic core of triglyceride and cholesteryl esters surrounded by a surface layer of apolipoproteins, phospholipids and unesterified cholesterol.
Structurally, lipoproteins are microscopic spherical particles ranging from 7 to 100 nm in diameter.
Each lipoproteins particle consists of a monolayer of polar, amphipathic lipids that surrounds a hydrophobic core.
One of the major functions of the liver in lipid metabolism is lipoprotein synthesis. The four major classes of circulating plasma lipoproteins are: chylomicrons, very low density lipoproteins (VLDL), low-density lipoproteins (LDL) and high density lipoproteins (HDL).
While chylomicrons made in the small intestine, the lipoproteins made by the liver. Chylomicrons in the blood deliver dietary fatty acids to cells via the enzyme lipoprotein lipase.
The enzymatic reaction releases fatty acids from the chylomicrons’ triglycerides, allowing their uptake into surrounding cells.
LDL lipoproteins are the major transporters of cholesterol in human plasma.
The protein portion of any lipoprotein is called the apolipoprotein. Apolipoproteins play a very important role in the structural and functional relationship among the lipoprotein. Each of the lipoprotein particles contains one or more apolipoprotein.
What is a lipoprotein?
