Which of the following lipids is involved in intracellular signaling pathways?
Phosphatidylinositol is quantitatively minor, about 5-8% of total phospholipid, but disproportionately important for intracellular signaling because its inositol ring can be phosphorylated at positions 3, 4, and 5 by dedicated kinases to generate combinatorial phosphoinositide codes. PI 4,5-bisphosphate resides in plasma membrane inner leaflet where phospholipase C, activated by Gq-coupled receptors or receptor tyrosine kinases, hydrolyzes it into two second messengers: diacylglycerol that remains membrane bound to recruit and activate conventional protein kinase C via C1 domain, and inositol
Ref: Lodish et al., Molecular Cell Biology, 9th ed., Chapter 16: Signaling, Phosphoinositide Second Messengers.