Phosphatidylcholine (PC)

Phosphatidylcholines (PC) are a class of phospholipids that incorporate choline as a headgroup. They are a major component of biological membranes and can be easily obtained from a variety of readily available sources, such as egg yolk or soy beans, from which they are mechanically or chemically extracted using hexane. They are also a member of the lecithin group of yellow-brownish fatty substances occurring in animal and plant tissues. Dipalmitoyl phosphatidylcholine is a major component of pulmonary surfactant and if often used in the L/S ratio to calculate fetal lung maturity. Oleic acid is transferred almost exclusively to phosphatidyl choline where it is further desaturated to linoleic and linolenic acids before being made available for the biosynthesis of other lipids. Palmitic acid is transferred mainly to phosphatidyl glycerol, where it is desaturated to trans-delta3-hexadecenoic acid.