title: Phospholipid modifications in bacteria.
abstract: Many bacteria alter the acyl chains of their membrane phospholipids in response to changing environmental conditions. Two of these modifications are reviewed: cis-->trans isomerization and cyclopropanation of double bonds. The isomerization reaction is now known to be catalyzed by a periplasmic protein that contains a covalently bound heme. Cyclopropanation has been shown to play a role in Mycobacterium tuberculosis pathogenesis and, in Escherichia coli, plays an important role in resistance to acidic conditions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, University of Illinois, B103 Chemical and Life Sciences Laboratory, 601 South Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, Illinois 61801, USA. j-cronan@life.uiuc.edu
authors.forename: John E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Cronan
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D001419:Bacteria / Q000378:metabolism*; D003521:Cyclopropanes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000378:metabolism; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D007536:Isomerism; D009169:Mycobacterium tuberculosis / Q000378:metabolism / Q000472:pathogenicity; D010743:Phospholipids / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D003521:Cyclopropanes; D005227:Fatty Acids; D010743:Phospholipids; C028775:cyclopropane fatty acids