Journal of Lipid Research, Vol 23, 1301-1307, Copyright © 1982 by Lipid Research, Inc.
The effect of temperature on glyceryl ethers in Tetrahymena pyriformis W
S Lund-Katz and RL Conner
The effect of temperature on the ether content of the glycerophospholipids
of Tetrahymena pyriformis W was examined. The only ether detected was
1-O-hexadecyl glycerol (alpha-chimyl alcohol). The data provide evidence
that the class 1-O-alkyl-2-acyl-sn-glycero-3-(2- aminoethyl)-phosphate
(1-alkyl PsE), in addition to the previously reported
1-O-alkyl-2-acyl-sn-glycero-3-(2-aminoethyl)-phosphonate (1- alkyl PnE) and
1-O-alkyl-2-acyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphorylcholine (1-alkyl PC), exists in
this ciliate species. A comparison was made of the ether content of the
glycerophospholipids from cells grown at 15 degrees and 28.5 degrees C. An
elevation in the amount of ether was noted in all glycerophospholipids at
the lower temperature with the largest proportional change in 1-alkyl PsE.
Tetrahymena species have a high gamma-linolenic acid content in the sn-1
position of the glycerophospholipids in addition to the usual saturated
acids and ether. The replacement at low temperature of gamma-linolenic acid
by a saturated hydrocarbon at the sn-1 position of the glycerophospholipids
of Tetrahymena pyriformis W should increase the microviscosity of the
membranes; thus, it is difficult to envision this alteration in the
glycerophospholipids as an adaptive change beneficial for growth. These
findings are in direct contrast to the situation in Tetrahymena thermophila
where the percentage of ether glycerophospholipids increases at the expense
of gamma-linolenate as the temperature rises.
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