Nutrient & Digestion 2 Flashcards
What is the main dietary fat?
Triglycerides
What is a triglyceride composed of?
1 glycerol head and 3 fatty acids
What is the issue with fats and digestion in a water rich system?
They are insoluble
What enzyme is involved in the digestion of fats?
Pancreatic lipase
What is emulsification?
The process of making larger fat droplets into smaller fat droplets
What are the two steps of emulsification?
- mechanical disruption
2. emulsification agent
Describe mechanical disruption in a little more detail
The process by which larger fat droplets are broken down into smaller fat droplets
Describe emulsification in a little more detail
The introduction of an emulsifying agent - bile salts and phospholipids - that prevent the smaller fat droplets from re-aggregating into larger droplets
Emulsifying agents are composed of both polar and non-polar domains (amphyphatic). What part of the fat molecule, do these domains associate with?
Polar - outside
Non-polar inside
What enzyme acts to breakdown fats?
Pancreatic lipase
After emulsification, what happens?
Micelles are formed containing, monoglycerol, fatty acids, phospholipids & bile salts
Describe the process of fat digestion
1 Fat (triacylglycerols)
2 Emulsification - two steps (mechanical disruption &
emulsifying agent - bile salts and phospholipids)
3 Pancreatic lipase acts
4 Micelle formation - bile salts, phospholipids, fatty acids
and monoglycerol
5 Diffusion of fatty acids and monoacylglycerol
6 Passage to the SER - re-packaged as TAG
7 Sent to GA
8 Sent via lacteals to lymphatics
