1982 Borden Award lecture. Nutritional, biochemical, and clinical aspects of inositol and phosphatidylinositol metabolism.

Recent advances in nutritional and biochemical research have substantiated the importance of myo-inositol both as a dietary component and a constituent of cellular phosphatidylinositol. This work has indicated the importance of acyltransferase reactions for the enrichment of membrane phosphatidylinositol in arachidonic acid and the formation of the 1-stearoyl 2-arachidonoyl molecular species which commonly predominate in mammalian tissues. Inositol deficiency in animals has been shown to produce an accumulation of triglyceride in liver, intestinal lipodystrophy, and other abnormalities. Cellular functions elucidated for phosphatidylinositol in biological membranes include mediating cellular responses to external stimuli and serving as a source of arachidonic acid for the biosynthesis of prostaglandins including thromboxane. An alteration in inositol metabolism has been documented in patients with diabetes mellitus and chronic renal failure which has led to clinical interest in modulating dietary inositol levels in the prevention and treatment of human disease.