Identification of 1-lysophosphatidylethanolamine (C(16:1)) as an antimicrobial compound in the housefly, Musca domestica

• Published in: Insect biochemistry and molecular biology Vol. 34; no. 1; pp. 43 - 49
• Main Authors: Meylaers, Karen, Clynen, Elke, Daloze, Désiré, DeLoof, Arnold, Schoofs, Liliane
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England 01.01.2004
• Subjects: Animals; Anti-Bacterial Agents - chemistry; Anti-Bacterial Agents - isolation & purification; Anti-Bacterial Agents - pharmacology; Antifungal Agents - chemistry; Antifungal Agents - isolation & purification; Antifungal Agents - pharmacology; Bacillus thuringiensis; Bacillus thuringiensis - drug effects; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid - methods; Escherichia coli; Escherichia coli - drug effects; Houseflies - chemistry; Houseflies - microbiology; Houseflies - physiology; Lysophospholipids - chemistry; Lysophospholipids - isolation & purification; Lysophospholipids - pharmacology; Lysophospholipids - physiology; Microbial Sensitivity Tests; Molecular Structure; Musca domestica; Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Biomolecular; Saccharomyces cerevisiae; Saccharomyces cerevisiae - drug effects; Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization
• ISSN: 0965-1748
• DOI: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2003.09.001

We observed that a methanolic whole body extract of uninfected last instar larvae of the housefly, Musca domestica, displayed antifungal and antibacterial activity. We have further purified this extract to a single active fraction using reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography. The pure fraction inhibited growth of the Gram-positive bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis and the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, but not the Gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli. The active compound was determined to have a molecular mass of 451.2 Da. Further analysis by nuclear magnetic resonance identified the substance as mono-unsaturated 1-lysophosphatidylethanolamine (C(16:1)) (1-LPE). The structurally different and more common 2-LPE have been described as mediators of the antimicrobial activity of rimenophenazine antibiotic agents (Van Rensburg et al., 1992). Our results suggest that the isolated 1-LPE displays a higher activity in comparison, possibly based on structure-specific differences in activity.