title: Spontaneous and protein-catalyzed transfer of 1-alkyl-2-acetyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (platelet-activating factor) between phospholipid bilayers.
abstract: 1-Alkyl-2-acetyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (platelet-activating factor or alkylacetyl-GPC), a bioactive phospholipid that possesses hypotensive, platelet-aggregating and inflammatory properties, is known to be secreted by a variety of cell types. The biological activity of alkylacetyl-GPC is related to a precise chemical structure that implicates interaction with proteins. We have studied the spontaneous and protein-catalyzed transfer of alkylacetyl-GPC between phospholipid vesicles and have demonstrated the following: 1. There are at least two transferable pools of alkylacetyl-GPC in sonicated phospholipid vesicles. 2. These two pools differ in the rate at which they dissociate from the vesicles; one pool equilibrates between donor and acceptor vesicles instantaneously while the other pool is transferred much more slowly. 3. Dialysis of alkylacetyl-GPC between phospholipid vesicles through the aqueous phase is slow. 4. A protein fraction derived from rat lung cytosol catalyzes the transfer of the nonequilibrating pool of alkylacetyl-GPC between phospholipid vesicles; this transfer is superimposed on the spontaneous transfer and is unchanged in experiments using vesicles from which the rapidly equilibrating pool has been removed.
mesh_terms: D007700:Kinetics; D008051:Lipid Bilayers; D010713:Phosphatidylcholines; D010714:Phosphatidylethanolamines; D010972:Platelet Activating Factor; D014316:Tritium
chemical_list: D008051:Lipid Bilayers; D010713:Phosphatidylcholines; D010714:Phosphatidylethanolamines; D010972:Platelet Activating Factor; D014316:Tritium