title: Identification of 1-lysophosphatidylethanolamine (C(16:1)) as an antimicrobial compound in the housefly, Musca domestica.
abstract: We observed that a methanolic whole body extract of uninfected last instar larvae of the housefly, Musca domestica, displayed antifungal and antibacterial activity. We have further purified this extract to a single active fraction using reversed phase high performance liquid chromatography. The pure fraction inhibited growth of the Gram-positive bacteria Bacillus thuringiensis and the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae, but not the Gram-negative bacteria Escherichia coli. The active compound was determined to have a molecular mass of 451.2 Da. Further analysis by nuclear magnetic resonance identified the substance as mono-unsaturated 1-lysophosphatidylethanolamine (C(16:1)) (1-LPE). The structurally different and more common 2-LPE have been described as mediators of the antimicrobial activity of rimenophenazine antibiotic agents (Van Rensburg et al., 1992). Our results suggest that the isolated 1-LPE displays a higher activity in comparison, possibly based on structure-specific differences in activity.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory for Developmental Physiology, Genomics and Proteomics, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Naamsestraat 59, B-3000 Leuven 3010, Belgium. karen.meylaers@bio.kuleuven.ac.be
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Meylaers
authors.forename: Elke
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Clynen
authors.forename: Désiré
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Daloze
authors.forename: Arnold
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: DeLoof
authors.forename: Liliane
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Schoofs
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology; D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology; D001413:Bacillus thuringiensis / Q000187:drug effects; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid / Q000379:methods; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects; D006793:Houseflies / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000502:physiology; D008246:Lysophospholipids / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000502:physiology*; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D015394:Molecular Structure; D019906:Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Biomolecular; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000187:drug effects; D021241:Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D000935:Antifungal Agents; D008246:Lysophospholipids; C008301:lysophosphatidylethanolamine