Lipid Droplets (LDs) are dynamic, ubiquitous intracellular organelles that serve as the primary storage sites for neutral lipids, such as triglycerides and cholesterol esters, within virtually all eukaryotic cells. Functionally, they are essential for regulating cellular energy homeostasis, providing a readily accessible and protected reservoir of fatty acids for subsequent energy production or membrane synthesis. They are structurally composed of a neutral lipid core surrounded by a phospholipid monolayer and a specific set of surface proteins, including perilipins, which regulate their metabolism. The dysregulation of their size, number, and mobilization is a hallmark of metabolic diseases like obesity, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, and systemic insulin resistance.
Origin
The term is a simple descriptive compound, combining “lipid,” the scientific term for fat, with “droplets,” referring to their characteristic spherical morphology within the cytoplasm. These structures have been observed microscopically for centuries, but their recognition as bona fide, functionally regulated organelles, rather than passive fat inclusions, is a relatively recent development in cell biology and endocrinology. This recognition highlighted their active role in energy metabolism and cellular signaling.
Mechanism
Lipid droplets are formed in the endoplasmic reticulum membrane through the accumulation of neutral lipids between the two leaflets of the bilayer, eventually budding off into the cytoplasm. Their function is tightly regulated by a sophisticated mechanism involving surface proteins that control lipolysis, the breakdown of stored triglycerides. Hormones like insulin inhibit lipolysis to promote storage, while catecholamines activate hormone-sensitive lipases to mobilize fatty acids for energy use, demonstrating their central role in the body’s endocrine-regulated energy partitioning.
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