Composition and thermal properties of membrane lipids in cryptoendolithic lichen microbiota from antarctica.
In Antarctica there exists a cryptoendolithic microbiota which survives extremely low temperatures. Fatty acid analysis of the membrane phospholipids of this microbial community showed a predominance of polyunsaturated fatty acids. Artificial membranes made from the purified community phospholipids remained fluid to below -20 degrees C and had unusual hydration properties.
Finegold
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Department of Physics, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104; Department of Medicine, Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario K7L 3N6, Canada ; Department of Biology, University of Alabama, Birmingham, Alabama 35294 ; and Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio 45221.
Singer
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Federle
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Vestal
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