Meta-Biol

• Pathways

Chylomicrons transport triacylglycerol, phospholipid, and cholesterol derived from dietary lipid from the small intestine to other tissues of the body. Each chylomicron assembles around a single molecule of apolipoprotein B-48 (Phillips et al. 1997) which at the time the particle leaves the intestine and enters the lymphatic circulation is complexed with >200,000 molecules of triacylglycerol (TG), ~35,000 of phospholipid, ~11,000 of cholesterol ester, ~8,000 of free cholesterol, ~60 copies of apolipoprotein A-I, ~15 copies of apolipoprotein A-IV, and copies of apolipoprotein A-II (Bhattacharya and Redgrave 1981).

Because of their hydrophobicity, lipids are found in the extracellular spaces of the human body primarily in the form of lipoprotein complexes. Chylomicrons form in the small intestine and transport dietary lipids to other tissues in the body. Very low density lipoproteins (VLDL) form in the liver and transport triacylglycerol synthesized there to other tissues of the body. As they circulate, VLDL are acted on by lipoprotein lipases on the endothelial surfaces of blood vessels, liberating fatty acids and glycerol to be taken up by tissues and converting the VLDL first to intermediate density lipoproteins (IDL) and then to low density lipoproteins (LDL). IDL and LDL are cleared from the circulation via a specific cell surface receptor, found in the body primarily on the surfaces of liver cells. High density lipoprotein (HDL) particles, initially formed primarily by the liver, shuttle several kinds of lipids between tissues and other lipoproteins. Notably, they are responsible for the so-called reverse transport of cholesterol from peripheral tissues to LDL for return to the liver.

Three aspects of lipoprotein function are currently annotated in Reactome: chylomicron-mediated lipid transport, LDL endocytosis and degradation, and HDL-mediated lipid transport, each divided into assembly, remodeling, and clearance subpathways.

By definition cells have a critical separation between inner (cytoplasmic) and outer (extracellular) compartments. This separation provides for protection, gradient assembly, and environmental control but at the same time isolates the interior compartments of the cell from energy resources, oxygen, and raw materials. Cells have evolved a myriad of mechanisms to regulate, and enable transportation of small molecules ascross plasma membranes and between cellular organelle compartments within cells.