Question

1. Explain why having large amounts of cholesterol in the cell will result in cholesterol levels in the blood being persistently high (even if no intracellular cholesterol is excreted).

Answer 1

Having large amounts of cholesterol in the cell will result in cholesterol levels in the blood being persistently high (even if no intracellular cholesterol is excreted).

-Cholesterol is produced in the liver and is also produced in most of the cells in the body.

- It is used to synthesise and repair cell membrane, make the hormones like testosterone(in males) and estrogen (in females), synthesis of vitamin D and fat dissolving bile acids. It also maintains the fluidity of the membrane depending upon the internal body temperature.

- It is formed from Acetyl CoA through several reactions which occurs in cytosol and Endoplasmic Reticulum. It is stored in liver, gall bladder and maximum storage takes place in adipocytes. These are carried in the blood in the form of lipoproteins.

-It is of two types-

(a) HDL(high-density lipoproteins) which are good cholestrols and are helping in removing bad cholesterols from our body. It brings all the cholestrols from the body to be flushed out.

(b) LDL (low-density lipoproteins) which are called bad cholesterols and form cholesterols in the arteries thus leading to blockage.

-Cholesterol level increases due to several factors like poor diet, smoking, drinking alcohol, unhealthy lifestyles. obesity, lack of exercise, age, diabetes etc.

- high Cholesterol level is due to any of the fulty lifestyles. Obesity is also playing a vital role in increasing the Cholesterol level as it increases the formation of LDL and also decreases its clearance from the blood.

- Apart from that LDL will also not allow the HDL to take the cholestrol to liver and other sites for storage or to flush out. Thus even though the intracellular cholesterol is not being added to the blood, still its level in the blood will remain high.