Salvestusvormingute

Salvestusvormingute, or storage forms, are compounds that organisms synthesize to store energy, carbon and reducing power for later use. They accumulate when nutrients are plentiful and are mobilized during periods of energy demand, dormancy, or growth. These storage forms can be carbohydrates, lipids or other polymers, and they are often compartmentalized within cells or tissues.

The major storage forms vary among kingdoms. In plants and algae, the principal carbohydrate storage is starch, stored in plastids such as chloroplasts and amyloplasts. Lipids are stored mainly as triacylglycerols in seeds and oil-rich tissues. In animals and many fungi, glycogen serves as a rapidly mobilizable carbohydrate reserve, stored in liver and muscle tissue (and fungal cells, respectively). Lipids are stored as triglycerides in adipose tissue or lipid droplets. Some microorganisms store energy as polymers such as polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) and inorganic polyphosphates. In seeds, both starch and oils provide energy and carbon for germination and early growth.

Mobilization of storage forms involves specific catabolic pathways. Glycogenolysis releases glucose units for glycolysis; lipolysis liberates fatty acids from triglycerides for beta-oxidation. In plants, starch breakdown during germination provides sugars for growing tissues, aided by amylases and other hydrolases. Regulation is mediated by hormones and signaling systems appropriate to the organism: insulin and other factors promote storage, while glucagon, adrenaline, or stress signals promote mobilization.

Storage forms are ecologically and nutritionally significant, supporting survival during nutrient fluctuations, enabling seed germination, and influencing energy balance in ecosystems. They are also central to fields such as agriculture, nutrition, and biotechnology, where altering storage-form dynamics can impact crop yield, meat quality, or microbial production of biopolymers.