(l-acylglycero-3-phosphorylcholine), the product of the removal of a single fatty acid molecule from lecithin; a phospholipid fraction.

Small quantities of lysolecithin are found in many animal and plant tissues. The richest sources are blood and the adrenal glands. Lysolecithin forms in the organism from lecithin under the influence of the enzyme phospholipase. It alters the permeability of biological membranes, induces the hemolysis of erythrocytes, regulates the permeability of vascular walls, and reduces cardiac sensitivity to acetylcholine. In the organism, lysolecithin is found in the form of a compound with albumin and cholesterol. (The latter reduces lysolecithin’s biological activity.)