Selective use of palmitic acid over stearic acid for synthesis of phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylglycerol in lung.

The incorporation of [3H]palmitic acid and [14C]stearic acid into phospholipids in rabbit lung tissue was studied. Under equal molar concentrations of palmitate and stearate, palmitate was incorporated to the 1- and 2-positions of phosphatidylcholine (PC) and phosphatidylglycerol (PG) 2-3 times more than stearate. By contrast, palmitate was 30% less than stearate in phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidylserine. These results suggest that preferential utilization of palmitate over stearate, rather than substrate availability, determines the high content of palmitoyl at the 1- and 2-positions of PC and PG in lung.