The Fatty Acids of Bacteria

O’Leary, William M.

doi:10.1128/mmbr.26.4.421-447.1962

Cited by 85 publications

(51 citation statements)

References 48 publications

(74 reference statements)

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“…As shown in the table, this fraction contained a large amount of nucleic acid as well as polysaccharides. DISCUSSION As described here, leptospires contain straight-chain fatty acids either with or without unsaturated bonds, but do not contain branched-chain, cyclopropane, or hydroxy acids, which are often observed in various microorganisms belonging to the orders Pseudomonadales, Eubacteriales, or Actinomycetales (2,15).…”

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confidence: 69%

“…In L. pomona, it was reported to be 12% (20), and in both parasitic and saprophytic leptospires, 18 to 24% (10). The lipid content of leptospires was found to be higher than that of most species of bacteria, whose lipid content has been reported to be between 1 and 10% of the dry weight of cells (15). The high content of lipid in leptospires may support the hypothesis (4) that fatty acids are an energy source for the organisms in addition to their presence as constituents of their cell membranes.…”

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confidence: 93%

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Composition of Fatty Acids and Carbohydrates in Leptospira

Kondo

Ueta

1972

J Bacteriol

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The fatty acid and monosaccharide composition of four pathogenic and two saprophytic strains of Leptospira was analyzed by gas chromatography (GC) and GC-mass spectrometry. Among the fatty acids, palmitic acid was most abundant and constituted 30 to 50% of the total fatty acids. Even-numbered unsaturated acids including octadecenoic, hexadecenoic, octadecadienoic, and tetradecadienoic acids comprised 40 to 60% of the total fatty acids. Tetradecanoic acid was about 5% in saprophytic strains, but 1% or less in pathogenic strains. The amount of chloroform-methanol extract of L. biflexa strain Ancona was 14 to 20% of the dry weight of the cell. Tetradecadienoic acid was found in the chloroform-methanol insoluble fraction, suggesting the presence of the acid in a bound form. GC analysis of monosaccharides revealed the existence of arabinose, xylose, rhamnose, mannose, galactose, glucose, glucosamine, and muramic acid in the cells. Among the neutral sugars, glucose was a minor component and was especially low in pathogenic strains. Total pentose content was about two to three times greater than total hexose.

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confidence: 69%

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confidence: 93%

Composition of Fatty Acids and Carbohydrates in Leptospira

Kondo

Ueta

1972

J Bacteriol

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“…3) showing that 6. subtiiis phospholipids do not inhibit KinA, whereas the free fatty acid preparation made from these lipids does, seem to indicate that an unesterified form of the inhibitory fatty acid present in an intracellular pool is responsible. Pools of unesterified fatty acids can occur in bacterial cells and, in fact, are unusually high in comparison with ether organisms (O'Leary, 1962). The pool ef free fatty acids in B. subtilis has been estimated te be about 1-2% under ordinary conditions (Mindich, 1972;D.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

cis‐Unsaturated fatty acids specifically inhibit a signal‐transducing protein kinase required for initiation of sporulation in Bacillus subtilis

Strauch¹,

Mendoza²,

Hoch³

1992

Molecular Microbiology

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The initiation of sporulation in Bacillus subtilis is controlled by the Spo0A transcription factor which is activated by phosphorylation through a phosphorelay mechanism that is dependent upon the activity of one or more protein kinases. The enzymatic activity of one of these protein kinases, KinA, was found to be inhibited in vitro by certain fatty acids. The most potent inhibitors have at least one unsaturated double bond in the cis configuration and a chain length of 16-20 carbon atoms. Homologous isomers with a trans double bond are not inhibitory. Saturated straight- or branched-chain fatty acids are either much weaker inhibitors or have no effect. The inhibitors prevent autophosphorylation of KinA and are non-competitive with ATP. B. subtilis phospholipids were found to contain at least one as yet unidentified type of fatty acid that, when present in an unesterified form, inhibited KinA. The results suggest that the concentration of a specific unsaturated fatty acid may act as a signal linking the initiation of sporulation to the status of membrane synthesis and septation or some other specific membrane-associated activity.

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“…Although only 10 of 25 species of Bacillus have been examined in this work, it seems probable that the occurrence of particular types of fatty acids in a microorganism may be a reliable identification of its genus. A further example is the presence of cyclopropyl fatty acids in Lactobacillus (12). In some cases, the detailed distribution patterns of fatty acids will have taxonomic value in the identification of species, but further investigations are necessary to explore this possibility.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Fatty Acids in the GenusBacillusI. Iso- and Anteiso-Fatty Acids as Characteristic Constituents of Lipids in 10 Species

Kaneda¹

1967

J Bacteriol

196

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Fatty acids produced by 22 strains of 10 species of the genus Bacillus were analyzed on a very efficient and selective gas-liquid chromatographic column. All of the 10 species, alvei, brevis, cereus, circulans, licheniformis, macerans, megaterium, polymyxa, pumilus, and subtilis, produced eight fatty acids, six branched (anteiso-C15, anteiso-C17, iso-C14, iso-C15, iso-C16, and iso-C17) and two normal (n-Cl4 and n-C16). In all cases, the six branched-chain fatty acids made up over 60% of the total fatty acids. In addition to the eight fatty acids, B. cereus produced four extra fatty acids, three branched (anteiso-C13, iso-C12, and iso-C13) and one monoenoic-n-CI6. Furthermore, there were distinct differences in the relative amounts of fatty acids produced between B. cereus and the remaining nine species. B. cereus produced iso-C15 fatty acid in the largest amount on a glucose-yeast extract medium as well as on Pennassay Broth. On the other hand, for the remaining nine species, anteiso-C15 fatty acid was the major fatty acid from the glucose-yeast extract medium, whereas the amount of iso-C15 fatty acid from Penassay Broth became comparable to that of anteiso-C15 fatty acid. Mechanisms and various factors affecting the fatty acid distribution pattern in the 10 Bacillus species are discussed.

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The Fatty Acids of Bacteria

Cited by 85 publications

References 48 publications

Composition of Fatty Acids and Carbohydrates in Leptospira

Composition of Fatty Acids and Carbohydrates in Leptospira

cis‐Unsaturated fatty acids specifically inhibit a signal‐transducing protein kinase required for initiation of sporulation in Bacillus subtilis

Fatty Acids in the GenusBacillusI. Iso- and Anteiso-Fatty Acids as Characteristic Constituents of Lipids in 10 Species

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