Occurrence of Plasmalogens in Anaerobic Bacteria

Abstract

Plasmalogens, aldehyde-containing phospholipids, were found to occur widely in all four fractions of ruminal microbes obtained after differential centrifugation of sheep rumen contents. Plasmalogens were also detected in ruminal and soil anaerobic bacteria which were obtained by enrichment cultures with various energy sources. They occurred widely in all strictly anaerobic bacteria and Propionibacterium tested. The strains included Desulfovibrio sp., Selenomonas ruminantium, Bacteroides ruminicola, Veilloneh la gazogenes, Peptostreptococcus elsdenii, Propionibacterium freudenreichii. Propionibacterium shermanii, Clostridium saccharoperbutylacetonicum, Clostridium acetobutylicum, Clostridium perfrigens, Clostridium kaneboi, and Clostridium kainantoi. Although the ubiquity of plasmalogens in these anaerobic bacteria was confirmed, the amount of plasmalogens per unit weight of cells varied considerably depending on bacterial species. Amount of plasmalogens in Selenomonas and Propionibacterium also varied by cultural conditions. However, plasmalogens were not detected in aerobic bacteria and in facultative anaerobic bacteria even when they were cultured under strictly anaerobic conditions. © 1969, Applied Microbiology, Molecular and Cellular Biosciences Research Foundation. All rights reserved.