Lipid: References & Edit History
More Articles On This Topic
- BiochemistryChemical composition of living matter
- biomolecule
- endoplasmic reticulum
- Golgi apparatus
- metabolismLipid components
- metabolic diseaseDisorders of lipid metabolism
- pregnancyFat
- kinase
- lipid storage disease
- muscle diseaseLipid storage myopathies
- nutritionLipids (fats and oils)
- human nutritionLipids
- poisonMoneran toxins
- connective tissueStationary cells
- smooth endoplasmic reticulum
Additional Reading
A textbook that covers all aspects of lipid metabolism and function is Dennis E. Vance and Jean E. Vance (eds.), Biochemistry of Lipids, Lipoproteins, and Membranes, 5th ed. (2008). An advanced general biochemistry text with accessible material on lipids is Christopher K. Mathews, K.E. van Holde, and Kevin G. Ahern, Biochemistry, 4th ed. (2013).
Lipid structures, properties, and metabolism are collected in Frank D. Gunstone, John L. Harwood, and Albert J. Dijkstra (eds.), The Lipid Handbook, 3rd ed. (2007). Biological membranes are discussed in Robert B. Gennis, Biomembranes: Molecular Structure and Function, 2nd ed. (1998); and William Stillwell, An Introduction to Biological Membranes: From Bilayers to Rafts (2013). A readable compendium of information about lipids is contained in Donald M. Small (ed.), The Physical Chemistry of Lipids: From Alkanes to Phospholipids, vol. 4 of Handbook of Lipid Research (1986). A readable discussion of the structure and metabolism of lipoproteins is contained in Charles R. Scriver et al. (eds.), The Metabolic and Molecular Bases of Inherited Disease, 8th ed. (2002).
The discovery, biochemistry, and physical chemistry of sphingolipids are detailed in Julian N. Kanfer and Sen-itiroh Hakomori, Sphingolipid Biochemistry, vol. 3 of Handbook of Lipid Research (1983). The significance of sphingolipids in human health and medicine is presented in Erich Gulbins and Irina Petrache (eds.), Sphingolipids: Basic Science and Drug Development (2013).
Article Contributors
Primary Contributors
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Thomas E. Thompson
Professor of biochemistry, University of Virginia School of Medicine, Charlottesville, Virginia, U.S.
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The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
Other Encyclopedia Britannica Contributors
Article History
| Type | Description | Contributor | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Article title updated for style. | Nov 11, 2026 | ||
| Modified link of Web site: Open Oregon Educational Resources - Nutrition: Science and Everyday Application - Lipid Types and Structures. | Sep 18, 2026 | ||
| Media added. | Apr 20, 2026 | ||
| Add new Web site: Open Oregon Educational Resources - Nutrition: Science and Everyday Application - Lipid Types and Structures. | Jun 19, 2025 | ||
| Questions and answers added. | Feb 13, 2025 | ||
| Add new Web site: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations - Lipids and Fatty Acids. | Jan 04, 2025 | ||
| Add new Web site: Mustansiriyah University - Lipid definition , classification , chemistry, and metabolism. | Dec 09, 2024 | ||
| Added an illustration of the mitochondrion. | Jun 21, 2024 | ||
| Add new Web site: Michigan State University - Department of Chemistry - Lipids. | Mar 27, 2024 | ||
| Add new Web site: OpenStax - Biology 2e - Lipids. | Feb 16, 2024 | ||
| Add new Web site: Verywell Health - What are Lipids? | Jan 03, 2024 | ||
| Add new Web site: Cleveland Clinic - Lipids. | Nov 07, 2023 | ||
| Add new Web site: U.S. Energy Information Administration - Oil and petroleum products explained. | Jun 30, 2023 | ||
| Add new Web site: Biology LibreTexts - Lipids. | Apr 27, 2023 | ||
| Add new Web site: Khan Academy - Lipids. | Dec 02, 2022 | ||
| Add new Web site: National Center for Biotechnology Information - Biochemistry, Lipids. | Aug 21, 2022 | ||
| Cross-references added. | Aug 07, 2019 | ||
| Added an image of an oogonium showing an abundance of lipid droplets in the cytoplasm. | Aug 07, 2019 | ||
| Corrected display issue. | Oct 12, 2018 | ||
| Add new Web site: LiveScience - The Big, Fat World of Lipids. | Nov 06, 2017 | ||
| Add new Web site: Better Health Channel - Fats and oils. | Sep 14, 2017 | ||
| Updated information on heart attack and stroke to note that the diseases are leading causes of death worldwide. | Aug 19, 2015 | ||
| Clarified information on essential fatty acids and added mention of trans fats. | Aug 19, 2015 | ||
| Bibliography thoroughly revised. | Aug 19, 2015 | ||
| Added information on the lipid content of chylomicrons and clarified information on the size range of mitochondria. | Aug 19, 2015 | ||
| Added a video about cholesterol. | Aug 19, 2015 | ||
| Add new Web site: Buzzle.com - Lipid. | Mar 14, 2014 | ||
| Added new Web site: Scientific Psychic - Lipids. | Aug 07, 2008 | ||
| Added new Web site: Michigan State University - Lipids. | Aug 04, 2008 | ||
| Added new Web site: Biology at Clermont College University of Cincinnati - Lipids. | Aug 04, 2008 | ||
| Added new Web site: Rader's Chem4Kids.Com - Lipids. | May 05, 2008 | ||
| Bibliography revised. | Jan 19, 2007 | ||
| Article thoroughly revised. | Jan 19, 2007 | ||
| Article added to new online database. | Jul 26, 1999 |