lipogenesis

lipogenesis — noun

1. The biological process, taking place mainly in the liver and fat cells, by which

1.nounC1
Definition

The biological process, taking place mainly in the liver and fat cells, by which the body converts carbohydrates or other nutrients into fatty acids and then stores them as fat, often to be used later as a source of energy.

Example

After a carbohydrate-rich meal, insulin triggers lipogenesis in the liver to store extra energy as fat.

collocation: increase lipogenesis / lipogenesis in the liver

Rachid studies how a high-sugar diet triggers excessive lipogenesis in mouse fat tissue.

collocation: excessive lipogenesis

Common collocations
  • increase lipogenesis
  • reduce lipogenesis
  • trigger lipogenesis
  • inhibit lipogenesis
  • hepatic lipogenesis
  • de novo lipogenesis
  • lipogenesis in adipose tissue
  • excessive lipogenesis
Synonyms
  • fat synthesis

    less technical, used in general biology contexts

  • fat formation

    even simpler, appropriate for introductory texts

  • de novo lipogenesis

    specifically refers to fat made from scratch from carbohydrates, not from dietary fat

Antonyms
  • lipolysis

    the biochemical breakdown of stored fat into fatty acids

  • fat oxidation

    the use of fatty acids for energy, opposite to fat storage

Grammar Patterns

lipogenesis + in [organ/tissue]

lipogenesis + of [substance]

Usage Note

Lipogenesis is an uncountable noun used mainly in academic or clinical writing about metabolism. It is frequently paired with verbs like 'increase,' 'reduce,' 'trigger,' or 'inhibit.' Distinguish from 'lipolysis,' which means the opposite process — the breakdown of stored fat.

Common Mistakes

The liver performs lipogenesis to break down fat stores for energy.
The liver performs lipogenesis to build up fat stores for later energy use.
Lipogenesis forms fat; lipolysis breaks it down.

Word family

  • lipogenic
    adjectiveC2
  • lipogenically
    adverbC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Lipogenesis refers strictly to the chemical process of creating fat molecules (triglycerides) from smaller building blocks, especially in the liver and adipose tissue. Lipolysis is its opposite — the breaking down of stored fat into free fatty acids for energy. Adipogenesis, often confused with lipogenesis, is the formation of new fat cells (adipocytes) rather than the production of fat inside them. Fat synthesis is a plain-English synonym for lipogenesis but lacks the biochemical precision needed in clinical or research writing. For example, a researcher might write 'insulin stimulates both lipogenesis and adipogenesis' — the hormone boosts both the filling of existing cells and the creation of new ones.

lipogenesis ↗lipolysisadipogenesisfat synthesis

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

  • de novo lipogenesis
  • hepatic lipogenesis
  • stimulation of lipogenesis
  • rate of lipogenesis

Prepositions

Etymology

GreekGermanEnglish

Coined in the late 1800s from two Greek roots: 'lipo-' from 'lipos' (fat, grease) and '-genesis' from 'genesis' (origin, creation, source). The compound literally means 'the creation of fat.' Its earliest recorded use is in German medical literature (Lipogenese), from which it entered English as a precise biochemical term.

First known use

1882

1882, in the meaning defined above