Lipids as an Energy Reserve:

Nearly all of the energy needed by the human body is provided by the oxidation of carbohydrates and lipids. Whereas carbohydrates provide a readily available source of energy, lipids function primarily as an energy reserve. The amount of lipids stored as an energy reserve far exceeds the energy stored as glycogen since the human body is simply not capable of storing as much glycogen compared to lipids. Lipids yield 9 kcal of energy per gram while carbohydrates and proteins yield only 4 kcal of energy per gram. It is interesting to compare the relative amounts of energy provided by various biochemicals in a typical 154 lb male. The free glucose in the blood provides only a 40 kcal energy reserve -- only enough to maintain body functions for a few minutes. Glycogen remaining stored in the liver and muscles after an overnight fast, amounts to about 600 kcal energy. Glycogen reserves can maintain body functions for about one day without new inputs of food. Protein (mostly in muscle) contains a substantial energy reserve of about 25,000 kcal. Finally, lipid reserves containing 100,000 kcal of energy can maintain human body functions without food for 30-40 days with sufficient water. Lipids or fats represent about 24 pounds of the body weight in a 154 pound male. Lipids provide the sole source of energy in hibernating animals and migrating birds. Fortunately, lipids are more compact and contain more energy per gram than glycogen, otherwise body weight would increase approximately 110 pounds if glycogen were to replace fat as the energy reserve.

Functions of Lipids:
Lipids or fats are stored in cells throughout the body principle in special kinds of connective tissue called adipose tissue or depot fat. Whereas many cells contain phospholipids in the bilayer cell membranes, adipose tissue cells consist of fat globules of triglycerides which may occupy as much as 90% of the cell volume. In addition to energy storage, depot fat provides a number of other functions. Fat serves as a protective cushion and provides structural support to help prevent injury to vital organs such as the heart, liver, kidneys, and spleen. Fat insulates the body from heat loss and extreme temperature changes. At the same time, fat deposits under the skin may be metabolized to generate heat in response to lower skin temperatures.

Lipids in the Blood:

Lipids ingested as food are digested in the small intestine where bile salts are used to emulsify them and pancreatic lipase hydrolyzes lipids into fatty acids, glycerol, soaps, or mono- and diglycerides. There is still some dispute about the lipid form that passes through the intestinal wall -- whether as fatty acids or as glycerides. In either case, triglycerides are found in the lymph system and the blood. Since lipids are not soluble in blood, they are transported as lipoproteins after reaction with water-soluble proteins in the blood. Fatty acids are generally transported in this form as well.

There is always a relatively constant supply of lipids in the blood, although of course, the concentration increases immediately following a meal. Lipids in the blood are absorbed by liver cells to provide energy for cellular functions. The liver is responsible for providing the proper concentrations of lipids in the blood. Some lipids are utilized by brain cells to synthesize brain and nerve tissue. Excess lipids in the blood are eventually converted into adipose tissue. If lipid levels in the blood become too low, the body synthesizes lipids from other foods, such as carbohydrates, or removes lipids from storage. The body also excretes some lipids in the form of fats, soaps, or fatty acids as a normal component of feces. Abnormally high levels of triglycerides and cholesterol are thought to be involved in hardening of the arteries. Lipids may be deposited on the walls of arteries as a partial consequence of their insolubility in the blood.
Muscle is a contractile tissue . Muscle cells contain contractile filaments that move past each other and change the size of the cell. They are classified as skeletal, cardiac, or smooth muscles. Their function is to produce force and cause motion. Muscles provide strength, balance, posture, movement and heat for the body to keep warm. Muscles can cause either locomotion of the organism itself or movement of internal organs. Cardiac and smooth muscle contraction occurs without conscious thought and is necessary for survival. Examples are the contraction of the heart andperistalsis which pushes food through the digestive system. Voluntary contraction of the skeletal muscles is used to move the body and can be finely controlled. Examples are movements of the eye, or gross movements like the quadriceps muscle of thethigh. There are two broad types of voluntary muscle fibers: slow twitch and fast twitch. Slow twitch fibers contract for long periods of time but with little force while fast twitch fibers contract quickly and powerfully but fatigue very rapidly. Upon stimulation by an action potential, skeletal muscles perform a coordinated contraction by shortening each sarcomere. The best proposed model for understanding contraction is the sliding filament model of muscle contraction. Actin and myosin fibers overlap in a contractile motion towards each other. Myosin filaments have club-shaped heads that project toward the actin filaments.

Larger structures along the myosin filament called myosin heads are used to provide attachment points on binding sites for the actin filaments. The myosin heads move in a coordinated style, they swivel toward the center of the sarcomere, detach and then reattach to the nearest active site of the actin filament. This

is called a rachet type drive system. This process consumes large amounts of adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Energy for this comes from ATP, the energy source of the cell. ATP binds to the cross bridges between myosin heads and actin filaments. The release of energy powers the swiveling of the myosin head. Muscles store little ATP and so must continuously recycle the discharged adenosine diphosphate molecule (ADP) into ATP rapidly. Muscle tissue also contains a stored supply of a fast acting recharge chemical, creatine phosphate which can assist initially producing the rapid regeneration of ADP into ATP. Calcium ions are required for each cycle of the sarcomere. Calcium is released from the sarcoplasmic reticulum into the sarcomere when a muscle is stimulated to contract. This calcium uncovers the actin binding sites. When the muscle no longer needs to contract, the calcium ions are pumped from the sarcomere and back into storage in the sarcoplasmic reticulum. Muscles are predominately powered by the oxidation of fats and carbohydrates, but anaerobic chemical reactions are also used, particularly by fast twitch fibers. These chemical reactions produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP) molecules which are used to power the movement of the myosin heads. There are three types of muscle: Skeletal muscle or "voluntary muscle" is anchored by tendons (or by aponeuroses at a few

places) to bone and is used to effect skeletal movement such as locomotion and in maintaining posture. Though this postural control is generally maintained as a subconscious reflex, the muscles responsible react to conscious control like non-postural muscles. An average adult male is made up of 42% of skeletal muscle and an average adult female is made up of 36% (as a percentage of body mass).[3] Smooth muscle or "involuntary muscle" is found within the walls of organs and structures such as

the esophagus,stomach, intestines, bronchi, uterus, urethra, bladder, blood vessels, and the arrector pili in the skin (in which it controls erection of body hair). Unlike skeletal muscle, smooth muscle is not under conscious control. Cardiac muscle is also an "involuntary muscle" but is more akin in structure to skeletal muscle,

and is found only in the heart. Cardiac and skeletal muscles are "striated" in that they contain sarcomeres and are packed into highly regular arrangements of bundles; smooth muscle has neither. While skeletal muscles are arranged in regular, parallel bundles, cardiac muscle connects at branching, irregular angles (called intercalated discs). Striated muscle contracts and relaxes in short, intense bursts, whereas smooth muscle sustains longer or even near-permanent contractions. Skeletal muscle is further divided into several subtypes:

Type I, slow oxidative, slow twitch, or "red" muscle is dense with capillaries and is rich

in mitochondria and myoglobin, giving the muscle tissue its characteristic red color. It can carry more oxygen and sustain aerobic activity. Type II, fast twitch muscle, has three major kinds that are, in order of increasing contractile

speed:[4] Type IIa, which, like slow muscle, is aerobic, rich in mitochondria and capillaries and

appears red. Type IIx (also known as type IId), which is less dense in mitochondria and myoglobin.

This is the fastest muscle type in humans. It can contract more quickly and with a greater amount of force than oxidative muscle, but can sustain only short, anaerobic bursts of activity before muscle contraction becomes painful (often incorrectly attributed to a build-up of lactic acid). N.B. in some books and articles this muscle in humans was, confusingly, called type IIB.[5] Type IIb, which is anaerobic, glycolytic, "white" muscle that is even less dense in

mitochondria and myoglobin. In small animals like rodents this is the major fast muscle type, explaining the pale color of their flesh. Muscular activity accounts for much of the body's energy consumption. All muscle cells produce adenosine triphosphate (ATP) molecules which are used to power the movement of the myosin heads. Muscles conserve energy in the form of creatine phosphate which is generated from ATP and can regenerate ATP when needed with creatine kinase. Muscles also keep a storage form of glucose in the form of glycogen. Glycogen can be rapidly converted to glucose when energy is required for sustained, powerful contractions. Within the voluntary skeletal muscles, the glucose molecule can be metabolized anaerobically in a process called glycolysis which produces two ATP and two lactic acid molecules in the process (note that in aerobic conditions, lactate is not formed; instead pyruvate is formed and transmitted through the citric acid cycle). Muscle cells also contain globules of fat, which are used for energy during aerobic exercise. The aerobic energy systems take longer to produce the ATP and reach peak efficiency, and requires many more biochemical steps, but produces significantly more ATP than anaerobic glycolysis. Cardiac muscle on the other hand, can readily consume any of the three macronutrients (protein, glucose and fat) aerobically without a 'warm up' period and always extracts the maximum ATP yield from any molecule involved. The heart, liver and red blood cells will also consume lactic acid produced and excreted by skeletal muscles during exercise. The efficiency of human muscle has been measured (in the context of rowing and cycling) at 18% to 26%. The efficiency is defined as the ratio of mechanical work output to the totalmetabolic cost, as can be calculated from oxygen consumption. This low efficiency is the result of about 40% efficiency of generating ATP from food energy, losses in converting energy from ATP into mechanical work inside the muscle, and mechanical losses inside the body. The latter two losses are dependent on the type of exercise and the type of muscle fibers being used (fast-twitch or slow-twitch). For an overal efficiency of 20 percent, one watt of mechanical power is equivalent to 4.3 kcal per hour. For example, a manufacturer of rowing equipment shows burned calories as four times the actual mechanical work, plus 300 kcal per hour,[16] which amounts to about 20 percent efficiency at 250 watts of mechanical output. The mechanical

energy output of a cyclic contraction can depend upon many factors, including activation timing, muscle strain trajectory, and rates of force rise & decay. These can be synthesized experimentally using work loop analysis. Exercise is often recommended as a means of improving motor skills, fitness, muscle and bone strength, and joint function. Exercise has several effects upon muscles, connective tissue, bone, and the nerves that stimulate the muscles. One such effect is muscle hypertrophy, an increase in size. This is used in bodybuilding. Various exercises require a predominance of certain muscle fiber utilization over another. Aerobic exercise involves long, low levels of exertion in which the muscles are used at well below their maximal contraction strength for long periods of time (the most classic example being the marathon). Aerobic events, which rely primarily on the aerobic (with oxygen) system, use a higher percentage of Type I (or slow-twitch) muscle fibers, consume a mixture of fat, protein and carbohydrates for energy, consume large amounts of oxygen and produce little lactic acid. Anaerobic exercise involves short bursts of higher intensity contractions at a much greater percentage of their maximum contraction strength. Examples of anaerobic exercise include sprinting and weight lifting. The anaerobic energy delivery system uses predominantly Type II or fast-twitch muscle fibers, relies mainly on ATP or glucose for fuel, consumes relatively little oxygen, protein and fat, produces large amounts of lactic acid and can not be sustained for as long a period as aerobic exercise. The presence of lactic acid has an inhibitory effect on ATP generation within the muscle; though not producing fatigue, it can inhibit or even stop performance if the intracellular concentration becomes too high. However, long-term training causes neovascularization within the muscle, increasing the ability to move waste products out of the muscles and maintain contraction. Once moved out of muscles with high concentrations within the sarcomere, lactic acid can be used by other muscles or body tissues as a source of energy, or transported to the liver where it is converted back topyruvate. In addition to increasing the level of lactic acid, strenuous exercise causes the loss of potassium ions in muscle and causing an increase in potassium ion concentrations close to the muscle fibres, in the interstitium. Acidification by lactic acid may allow recovery of force so that acidosis may protect against fatigue rather than being a cause of fatigue. [6]

Humans are genetically predisposed with a larger percentage of one type of muscle group over another. An individual born with a greater percentage of Type I muscle fibers would theoretically be more suited to endurance events, such as triathlons, distance running, and long cycling events, whereas a human born with a greater percentage of Type II muscle fibers would be more likely to excel at anaerobic events such as a 200 meter dash, or weightlifting.[citation needed] Delayed onset muscle soreness is pain or discomfort that may be felt one to three days after exercising and subsides generally within two to three days later. Once thought to be caused by lactic acid buildup, a more recent theory is that it is caused by tiny tears in the muscle fibers caused by eccentric contraction, or unaccustomed training levels. Since lactic acid disperses fairly rapidly, it could not explain pain experienced days after exercise.[7]

Muscular, spinal and neural factors all affect muscle building. Sometimes a person may notice an increase in strength in a given muscle even though only its opposite has been subject to exercise, such as when a bodybuilder finds her left biceps stronger after completing a regimen focusing only on the right biceps. This phenomenon is called cross education.

Anaerobic respiration for humans: In general in humans it is the muscle tissue that respires anaerobically normally during exercise, at which time the body cannot intake the required oxygen for the cells to respire. This clearly indicates that enough energy is not made and the muscles require more energy. So they achieve it in the absence of oxygen. But when they have stopped exercising, commonly an oxygen debt has been created, because of the large amount of lactic acid inside the muscles. It is because of this fact the humans breath heavily after exercising to negate the oxygen debt. Respiration is one of the vital functionality of the body which are of critical significance for all living organisms let it be humans or the microscopic bacteria. Generally the respiration processserves two fundamental purposes in living organisms. The first is the removal of the electrons generated during catabolism and the second is generation of ATP. This respiration mechanism is situated in cell membranes of prokaryotes whereas it is located in the inner membranes of mitochondria for eukaryotes. The respiration needs a terminal electron acceptor. Quite simply, the respiration process, that uses oxygen as the terminal electron acceptor is called as aerobic respiration and the one that makes use of terminal electron acceptors other than oxygen is termed as anaerobic respiration. Beginning from the bio-chemical pathway used to utilize bio-molecules, to the quantity of energy released in the respiration process, there are a lot of differences in aerobic and anaerobic respiration. The fundamental difference in the between the two types of respiration is that aerobic respiration requires the presence of oxygen. Also the process of anaerobic respiration is comparatively less energy generating as compared to the aerobic respiration process. In the process of alcoholic fermentation or the anaerobic respiration 2 molecules of ATP (energy) are produced for the each and every molecule of glucose used in the reaction. In the same way for the lactate fermentation two molecules of ATP are produced for every molecule of glucose used. Thus in anaerobic respiration the process breaks down one molecule of glucose to get two units of energy storing ATP molecules. The anaerobic respiration can be defined as release of energy from a foodstuff in the form cells could utilize in the absence of oxygen. It is different from aerobic respiration in the sense that it doesnt need oxygen. The word equation

for anaerobic respiration in humans is as follows: Glucose -> Lactic acid Glycolysis (it literally means glucose degradation) is a metabolic pathway which changes glucose C6H12O6 into pyruvate CH3COCOO + H. The free energy which is generated in this process is utilized to make high energy compounds namely ATP (adenosine triphophate) and NADH (reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide). It is a confirmed process of ten reactions with ten intermediate compounds (one step has 2 intermediates). The intermediate steps supply the point of entry for glycolysis. Now lets consider one example, a lot of monosaccharide like fructose, glucose and galactose, could be turned in to one of the intermediates. The intermediate in itself may directly be of use. Consider an example the intermediate dihydroxyacetone phosphate; it is a source of glycerol which gets together with fatty acids to create fat. Glycolysis is recognized as the archetype of a universal metabolic pathway. This process happens with some degree of variation in all the organisms both aerobic and anaerobic. The frequent occurrence of glycolysis shows that it is one of the older known metabolic pathways. The most commonly occurring glycolysis is the Embden-Meyerhof pathway which was found out by Gustav Embden and Otto Meyerhof. Anaerobic Respiration: One way of doing this is to just get the pyruvate to do oxidation; in this procedure the pyruvate gets converted in to lactate (this is the conjugate base of lactic acid) in a process which is called lactic acid fermentation. This process can be represented in a word equation as: pyruvate + NADH + H -> lactate + NAD
Anaerobic respiration in humans takes place when muscle undergoes extreme contraction as in vigorous exercise.Anaerobic respiration takes place in 2 places 1. the muscle cell and 2. large intestine of undigested food, from the small intestine producing minerals and vitamins. When we exercise really vigorously, the muscles are trying to break down glucose faster than the heart and lungs can supply oxygen. So the cells can only get as far as breaking down the glucose into pyruvate, then convert that into lactate (also called lactic acid). The process is called lactic acid fermentation. The muscle cells obtain very little energy from it (only two ATP molecules are synthesized for each glucose molecule respired) but it enables the muscles to carry on exercising longer than otherwise.

This reaction happens in the bacteria which are involved in making yogurt (lactic acid makes the milk to curdle). This reaction also happens in animals which are under hypoxic (or partially anaerobic) conditions, found for example in overused muscles which are lacking oxygen, or in infracted heart muscle cells. In most

tissues for cells this is the final resort for energy; most of the animal tissues cannot maintain the anaerobic respiration over an extended period of time. Some organisms like yeast turn NADH to NAD in a reaction called as ethanol fermentation. In the reaction the pyruvate is turned first into acetaldehyde and CO2, after this into ethanol. The lactic acid fermentation and ethanol fermentation can happen in the lack of oxygen presence. The anaerobic fermentation lets a lot of single celled organisms to use glycolysis as their only source of energy. From the two examples above regarding the fermentation, NADH is oxidized by sending 2 electrons to pyruvate. But anaerobic bacteria use a big range of compounds as the terminal electron acceptors in the process of cellular respiration. Remember oxygen is not an essential for the glycolysis to occur. In many organisms such as C. tetani (this causes tetanus) or C. Perfringence (this causes gangrine) called as obligate anaerobes, the oxygen presence will be lethal. In the organisms that use glycolysis, absence of oxygen stops pyruvate from being metabolized to CO2 and H2O through the citric acid cycle and the electron transport chain (which relies on oxygen) doesnt work. Fermentation will not generate energy more that already generated from glycolysis (2 ATPs) but serves to re obtain NAD so the glycolysis can go on. There are useful end products created such as lactate or ethanol.

Cellular Respiration
All living things in the world including plants require energy in order to function. This energy is obtained from the food we eat. The cells break down the energy stored in the food through a unique system known as cellular respiration. In plain language, cellular respiration means the procedure through which the food is broken down by the cells of living beings in order to produce the energy which is in the form of ATP molecules (also known as the Adenosine Tri Phosphate molecules). Plants use a part of this ATP energy during photosynthesis for producing sugar. The sugars are then broken down during cellular respiration. This cycle is continued again and again as long as the plant lives. In cellular respiration there are three stages, which are known as (a) Glycolysis (b) Krebs Cycle and (c) Electron Transport Chain (Etc). Every cell of all living creatures, which includes plants, carries cellular respiration, as it is very essential for life. However, there is no fixed time or point in the timing of the respiration. Cells, which are neighbors, also involve itself in cellular respiration at different stages. The reaction that occurs during cellular respiration produces the energy. During this process, the polymers are broken down in more small and manageable pieces. The carbohydrate that is obtained during the respiration is disassembled into molecules of glucose, which in turn is used to

produce ATP molecules, which are rich in energy. In plain terms, we can say that during cellular respiration, one glucose molecules and six oxygen molecules will produce six carbon dioxide and six water molecules and in between 36 to 38 ATP molecules. There are three stages of cellular respiration, which are as follows:

(a) Glycolysis This process breaks down the molecules of glucose from the carbohydrates and converts it into pyruvate. The procedure occurs in the cytosol, inside the cell and can carry its work without the requirement of oxygen. At the first stage of glycolysis, the phosphate is drawn from the ATP and added to the molecule of the glucose, which makes the molecule to become chemically reactive. This reaction changes the molecule into isomer and fructose.

(b) Krebs cycle By Krebs cycle we mean a series of procedures, which gets catalyzed by the enzymes, and oxidize the molecule of Acetyl-coA. It is actually an aerobic procedure, which actually means that it requires oxygen for functioning. Krebs cycle must complete two complete turns for producing 4 molecules of carbon dioxide, 6 molecules of NADH, 2 molecules of ATP and 2 molecules of FADH2 which is an energy giving molecule.

(c) Electron Transport Chain During the process of glycolysis and Krebs cycle, very little energy is produced. The energy that remains inside the original molecule of glucose gets released through the electron transport chain. This chain is actually a widespread network of electron carrying proteins, which are found inside the inner membrane of the mitochondrion. The work of these proteins is to transfer the electrons from one to another and finally adds itself with the protons to the oxygen, which is known as the final electron acceptor. Though water is produced during this procedure, no ATP is produced. ATP is produced later through a proton. Thus the work of the electron transport chain is only to produce an ingredient from which ATP can be produced.

We should remember that cellular respiration could occur only if oxygen is available. There are some organisms that live in anaerobic conditions. In such cases, full cellular respiration is not possible for those organisms that are living in anaerobic conditions. Glycolysis is the one and only cellular respiration process for such type of organisms.

Thus we can safely say that all organisms use the sugar, which is available in their food to turn it into energy in order to be able to live and perform the necessary actions that are made by all living creatures. In the aerobic respiration (with the use of oxygen) the glucose molecules are broken totally generating all of the useful energy and producing CO2 and H2O as waste products. The word equation for aerobic respiration shows: Glucose + oxygen -> carbon dioxide + water + energy However in the anaerobic respiration the glucose molecules are only partly broken so only a part of energy is released and instead of CO2 and H2O, the byproducts are either CO2 and ethanol or lactic acid. The equation for this is: Glucose -> ethanol + carbon dioxide + energy Glucose -> lactic acid + energy These symbol equations are represented as: C6H12O6 -> 2CO2 + 2CH3-CH2-OH (ethanol) C6H12O6 -> 2C3H6O3 (lactic acid) So as in aerobic respiration one molecule of glucose can generate 38 molecules of ATP, in anaerobic respiration about 2 molecules of ATP are released per one molecule of glucose.
A triglyceride (TG, triacylglycerol, TAG, or triacylglyceride) is an ester derived from glycerol and three fatty acids.[1] There are many triglycerides, depending on the oil source, some are highly unsaturated, some less so. Saturated compounds are "saturated" with hydrogen. Unsaturated compounds have double bonds (C=C) between carbon atoms. Saturated compounds have single bonds (C-C) between the carbon atoms, and the other bond is bound to hydrogen atoms (for example =CH-CH=, -CH2-CH2-, etc.). Unsaturated fats have a lower melting point and are more likely to be liquid. Saturated fats have a higher melting point and are more likely to be solid. Triglycerides are the main constituents of vegetable oil (typically more unsaturated) and animal fats (typically more saturated).[2] In humans, triglycerides are a mechanism for storing unused calories, and their high concentrations in blood correlates with the consumption of starchy and fatty foods. Triglycerides, as major components of very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL) and chylomicrons, play an important role in metabolism as energy sources and transporters of dietary fat. They contain more than twice as much energy (9 kcal/g or 38 kJ/g ) as carbohydrates and proteins. In the intestine, triglycerides are split into monoacylglycerol and free fatty acids in a process called lipolysis, with the secretion of lipases and bile, which are subsequently moved to absorptive enterocytes, cells lining the intestines. The triglycerides are rebuilt in the enterocytes from their fragments and packaged together with cholesterol and proteins to form chylomicrons. These are excreted from the cells and collected by the lymph system and transported to the large vessels near the heart before being mixed into the blood. Various tissues can capture the chylomicrons, releasing the triglycerides to be used as a source of

energy. Fat and liver cells can synthesize and store triglycerides. When the body requires fatty acids as an energy source, the hormone glucagon signals the breakdown of the triglycerides by hormonesensitive lipase to release free fatty acids. As the brain cannot utilize fatty acids as an energy source (unless converted to a ketone), the glycerol component of triglycerides can be converted into glucose, via glycolysis by conversion into Dihydroxyacetone phosphate and then into Glyceraldehyde 3phosphate, for brain fuel when it is broken down. Fat cells may also be broken down for that reason, if the brain's needs ever outweigh the body's. Triglycerides cannot pass through cell membranes freely. Special enzymes on the walls of blood vessels called lipoprotein lipases must break down triglycerides into free fatty acids and glycerol. Fatty acids can then be taken up by cells via the fatty acid transporter (FAT). Cholesterol is a waxy steroid of fat that is produced in the liver or intestines. It is used to produce hormones and cell membranes and is transported in the blood plasma of all mammals.[2] It is an essential structural component of mammalian cell membranes and is required to establish proper membrane permeability and fluidity. In addition, cholesterol is an important component for the manufacture of bile acids,steroid hormones, and vitamin D. Cholesterol is the principal sterol synthesized by animals; however, small quantities can be synthesized in other eukaryotes such as plants and fungi. It is almost completely absent among prokaryotes including bacteria.[3] Although cholesterol is important and necessary for mammals, high levels of cholesterol in the blood have been linked to damage to arteries and are potentially linked to diseases such as those associated with the cardiovascular system (heart disease).[4] The name cholesterol originates from the Greek chole- (bile) and stereos (solid), and the chemical suffix ol for an alcohol. Franois Poulletier de la Salle first identified cholesterol in solid form in gallstones, in 1769. However, it was only in 1815 that chemist Eugne Chevreul named the compound "cholesterine".[ Since cholesterol is essential for all animal life, it is primarily synthesized from simpler substances within the body. However, high levels in blood circulation, depending on how it is transported within lipoproteins, are strongly associated with progression of atherosclerosis. For a person of about 68 kg (150 pounds), typical total body cholesterol synthesis is about 1 g (1,000 mg) per day, and total body content is about 35 g. Typical daily additional dietary intake in the United States is 200300 mg.[citation needed] The body compensates for cholesterol intake by reducing the amount synthesized. Cholesterol is recycled. It is excreted by the liver via the bile into the digestive tract. Typically about 50% of the excreted cholesterol is reabsorbed by the small bowel back into the bloodstream. Phytosterols can compete with cholesterol reabsorption in the intestinal tract, thus reducing cholesterol reabsorption.[ Animal fats are complex mixtures of triglycerides, with lesser amounts of phospholipids and cholesterol. As a consequence, all foods containing animal fat contain cholesterol to varying extents.[13] Major dietary sources of cholesterol include cheese, egg yolks, beef, pork, poultry, fish, andshrimp.[14] Human breast milk also contains significant quantities of cholesterol.[15]

Eukaryotes have areas inside the cell separated off from the rest of the cell by membranes, like the cell membrane (see below). These areas include the nucleus, numerous mitochondria and other organelles such as the golgi body, and or chloroplasts within each of their cells. These areas are made distinct from the main mass of the cells cytoplasm by their own membrane in order to allow them to be more specialised. You can think of them as separate rooms within your house. The nucleus contains all the cell's DNA, the Mitochondria are where energy is generated, chloroplasts are where plants trap the suns energy in photosynthesis. There are exceptions to every rule of course, and in this case the most obvious two are the red blood cells of animals and the sieve tube elements of plants, which, though living, have no nucleus and no DNA, normally these cells to do not live very long.