Journal of Lipid Research, Vol. 12, 396-402, July 1971
Copyright © 1971 by Lipid Research, Inc.

Structural analysis of phosphatidylcholine of plant tissue

K. A. Devor and J. B. Mudd

Department of Biochemistry, and Statewide Air Pollution Research Center, University of California, Riverside, California 92502

Pure preparations of phosphatidylcholine were isolated from spinach leaf chloroplasts, spinach leaf microsomes, and cauliflower inflorescence. The isolated phosphatidylcholine was treated with snake venom phospholipase A, and the fatty acid distribution and composition of the fatty acid methyl esters prepared from the lysophosphatidylcholine and the freed fatty acid were determined by gas-liquid chromatography. The results showed that saturated fatty acids were preferentially esterified at position 1 and unsaturated fatty acids at position 2. The phosphatidylcholine from cauliflower was also treated with phospholipase C. The resulting diglycerides were fractionated on AgNO₃-impregnated thin-layer plates. The diglyceride fractions were transesterified and the fatty acid composition of each was determined by gas-liquid chromatography. The predominant species contained linolenic acid only (22% of the total), linolenic and oleic acids (19%), and linolenic and palmitic acids (37%). These molecular species could not be accounted for by random distribution of the fatty acids.

Supplementary key words chloroplasts • microsomes • fatty acid distribution • diglyceride species

Submitted on August 28, 1970
Accepted on February 11, 1971

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