Esterification of palmitic acid in swine aortic homogenates.

The incorporation of [1-14C] palmitic acid into tissue lipids of the medial and intimal layers of swine aortic homogenates was investigated. The homogenates obtained were metabolically active as indicated by their ready incorporation of labeled palmitic acid into phospholipids, diglycerides and triglycerides in the presence of alpha-glycerophosphate in the incubation medium. Predominantly, labeling of phospholipids and especially of phosphatidylcholine was found when alpha-glycerophosphate or lysolecithin served as the fatty acid acceptor. Glycerol and monoolein did not serve as fatty acid acceptors. More than 98% of the radioactivity was recovered as the rephosphatidylcholine fraction at the level of 0.64 micromoles/ml of lysolecithin in the incubation medium.