Incorporation of Acetate and Fatty Acids into Lipids of Rat Platelets 1

Abstract

Summary

The incorporation of acetate and fatty acids into rat platelet lipids was studied by incubating washed platelets with acetate-1-¹⁴C or albumin-bound fatty acids-1-¹⁴C (palmitic, oleic, linoleic, and linolenic acid) in an artificial medium without addition of cofactors. Acetate was incorporated primarily into PC, TG, CEM, FFA, and PE which accounted for three-fourths of its total incorporation into lipids. Palmitate incorporation into platelet lipids was twice as high as that of each of the unsaturated fatty acids. A distinctive pattern of distribution of palmitate or of the unsaturated fatty acids among the various lipid classes was observed as well as differences in the relative abundance of the fatty acids incorporated into each PL group. Rat platelets are therefore capable of (i) incorporation of fatty acids from the suspending medium, and (ii) de novo synthesis of fatty acids, Pattern of fatty acid incorporation and rate of de novo synthesis appear to be different from those in human platelets.