3palmitoyl

3palmitoyl is a shorthand used in lipid chemistry to denote a palmitoyl group attached to the third carbon of the glycerol backbone in glycerolipids. The palmitoyl group comes from palmitic acid, a saturated 16-carbon fatty acid (C16:0). When located at the 3-position, the molecule can be described as glycerol-3-palmitate, and the overall lipid may be a monoacylglycerol, diacylglycerol, or triacylglycerol depending on whether other positions bear additional acyl groups.

In practice, 3palmitoyl can refer to glycerol monopalmitate (a single palmitoyl ester at C-3) or to a more complex glycerolipid that includes a palmitoyl substituent at the 3-position alongside other fatty acyl groups. The term is commonly encountered in lipidomics datasets and biochemical literature as a position-specific descriptor for a palmitoyl substituent on the glycerol backbone.

Biosynthesis and metabolism: Palmitoyl groups are transferred to glycerol by acyltransferase enzymes using palmitoyl-CoA as the donor. Lipolytic processes can release palmitic acid from the 3-position, contributing to fatty acid availability. Enzyme regiospecificity influences how palmitoyl groups are distributed among the glycerol backbone during synthesis and catabolism.

Nomenclature and context: The exact identity of a 3palmitoyl species depends on the other acyl substituents and stereochemistry. Systematically, it may be named glycerol-3-palmitate or sn-3-palmitoyl glycerol. In databases, 3palmitoyl is typically a descriptor indicating the position of the palmitoyl moiety rather than a standalone compound.