Medical Emergencies · single question

Ketone bodies are produced primarily from the breakdown of which substrate when glucose is low or unavailable?

  1. Lipids
  2. Glucose itself
  3. Amino acids primarily
  4. Carbon dioxide
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Correct answer: A. Lipids

Ketone bodies are produced in the liver via beta-oxidation of fatty acids (lipids) when glucose availability is low (such as during starvation, prolonged fasting, or insulin deficiency in diabetic ketoacidosis), providing an alternative energy substrate when glucose-based metabolism is insufficient.

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