title: Effect of growth temperature and growth phase on the lipid composition of the archaeal membrane from Thermococcus kodakaraensis.
abstract: Archaea have unique membrane lipids typified by ether linkages of the glycerol-to-isoprenoid chains with sn-2,3 stereochemistry that runs against the naturally occurring sn-1,2 stereochemistry of the glycerophospholipids of Bacteria and Eukarya. Membrane lipids were extracted and analyzed from the hyperthermophilic archaeon, Thermococcus kodakaraensis, cultivated at various temperatures. At all growth temperatures examined, both the diphytanylglycerol diether (archaeol, C(20)) and diphytanyldiglycerol tetraether (caldarchaeol, C(40)) were identified as saturated forms, and no other lipids could be identified. The ratio of caldarchaeol to archaeol increased with increasing growth temperature, particularly at 93 degrees C. A larger amount of archaeol was detected from cells in the logarithmic phase than from those in the stationary phase at all temperatures examined. These results indicate that T. kodakaraensis modulated the membrane lipid composition depending on both the growth phase and the growth temperature, and suggest that the membrane fluidity to environmental change was maintained by altering the length of the hydrocarbon chains, and not by side-chain saturation such as double-bond hydrogenation nor by such a modification as cyclopentane ring formation.
authors.affiliation: Nanobiotechnology Research Center, Department of Bioscience, Graduate School of Science and Technology, Kwansei-Gakuin University.
authors.forename: Yasuhiko
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Matsuno
authors.forename: Akihiko
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sugai
authors.forename: Hiroki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Higashibata
authors.forename: Wakao
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Fukuda
authors.forename: Katsuaki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ueda
authors.forename: Ikuko
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Uda
authors.forename: Itaru
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.forename: Toshihiro
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Itoh
authors.forename: Tadayuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Imanaka
authors.forename: Shinsuke
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fujiwara
mesh_terms: D005995:Glyceryl Ethers / Q000032:analysis; D008563:Membrane Lipids / Q000032:analysis* / Q000737:chemistry; D013696:Temperature; D019712:Thermococcus / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000166:cytology* / Q000254:growth & development
chemical_list: D005995:Glyceryl Ethers; D008563:Membrane Lipids; C094417:archaeol lipid