Lipids of extremely halophilic archaeobacteria from saline environments in India: A novel glycolipid in Natronobacterium strains

• Published in: Microbiology (Society for General Microbiology) Vol. 140; no. 8; pp. 1959 - 1966
• Main Authors: Upasani, Vivek N, Desai, Suresh G, Moldoveanu, Natalia, Kates, Morris
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Reading Soc General Microbiol 01.08.1994; Society for General Microbiology
• Subjects: Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Bacteriology; Biological and medical sciences; Carbohydrate Sequence; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Glyceryl Ethers - chemistry; Glyceryl Ethers - isolation & purification; Glycolipids - chemistry; Glycolipids - isolation & purification; Halobacteriales - chemistry; Halobacteriales - isolation & purification; Halobacterium - chemistry; Halobacterium - isolation & purification; India; Lipids - analysis; Membrane Lipids - analysis; Microbial ecology; Microbiology; Molecular Sequence Data; Morphology, structure, chemical composition; Natronobacterium; Phospholipids - analysis; Seawater; Sodium Chloride; Various environments (extraatmospheric space, air, water); Water Microbiology; India; Aquatic environment; Archaeobacteria; Halophily; Halobacteriales; Haloferax; Phospholipid; Bacteria; Lipids; Halobacterium; Chemical composition; Halobacteriaceae; Glycolipid
• ISSN: 1350-0872; 1465-2080
• DOI: 10.1099/13500872-140-8-1959

1 Department of Biochemistry, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada K1N 6N5 2 M.G. Science Institute, Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India 3 Department of Microbiology, Gujarat University, Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India ABSTRACT Several strains of extremely halophilic archaeobacteria, both non-alkaliphilic and alkaliphilic, including Halobacterium, Haloferax and Natronobacterium species, were isolated from salt locales in India. The major phospholipids in these strains were the C 20 -C 20 -glycerol diether analogues of phosphatidylglycerolmethylphosphate (PGP-Me), phosphatidylglycerol (PG) and phosphatidic acid (PA). In addition, the Halobacterium strains possessed the characteristic glycolipids, sulfated triglycosyl and tetraglycosyl diethers (S-TGD-1 and S-TeGD, respectively) and the unsulfated triglycosyl diether (TGD-1); and the Haloferax strains had the characteristic sulfated and unsulfated diglycosyl glycerol diethers (S-DGD-1 and DGD-1, respectively). The PGP-Me, and PG components of the haloalkaliphiles each occurred as two molecular species with C 20 -C 20 - and C 20 -C 25 - (isopranoid) glycerol diether lipid cores. In contrast to previous reports of the absence of glycolipids in natronobacteria, the Natronobacterium strains from India were found to contain small amounts of a novel glycolipid identified as glucopyranosyl-1 6-glucopyranosyl-1 1-glycerol diether (DGD-4). The lipid cores of DGD-4 also contained mainly unhydroxylated or hydroxylated C 20 -C 20 , C 20 -C 25 and C 25 -C 25 molecular species with unsaturated (isoprenoid) chains. Hydroxylated lipid cores have previously been identified only in some methanogenic archaeobacteria. Author for correspondence: Morris Kates. Tel: +1 613 564 5875. Fax: +1 613 564 5014. Keywords: archaeobacteria, lipids, Natronobacterium , Halobacterium, Haloferax