What is the role of bile in fat digestion?

• A. Emulsifies fats, enabling pancreatic lipase to act.
• B. Transports fats directly into blood.
• C. Neutralizes acid in stomach.
• D. Digests proteins.

Answer: (A)

Bile's job in fat digestion is to emulsify fats, creating tiny droplets with a much larger surface area for pancreatic lipase to act. The bile salts are amphipathic, surrounding fat droplets and breaking them into smaller pieces so the enzyme can efficiently hydrolyze triglycerides into fatty acids and monoglycerides. This emulsification also helps form micelles, which carry the digestion products to the intestinal lining for absorption. Fats are not transported directly into the blood; they’re absorbed as fatty acids and monoglycerides into enterocytes, reassembled into triglycerides, and then enter the lymphatic system as chylomicrons. Bile does not neutralize stomach acid and does not digest proteins.