Existence of carotenoids in Acholeplasma axanthum

Smith, Paul F.; Langworthy, Thomas A.

doi:10.1128/jb.137.1.185-188.1979

Cited by 15 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…It had already been reported in the 1960s that certain members of the class Mollicutes are also able to synthesize carotenoids. However, it was believed that these compounds are synthesized exclusively by Mollicutes that are not dependent on sterols for growth, such as Acholeplasma laidlawii and Acholeplasma axanthum (Razin & Cleverdon, 1965;Rottem & Markowitz, 1979;Smith, 1963;Smith & Langworthy, 1979), and not by others, such as M. pneumoniae. We report here that M. pneumoniae may also be capable of synthesizing carotenoids.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Raman spectroscopic typing reveals the presence of carotenoids in Mycoplasma pneumoniae

Maquelin

Hoogenboezem

Jachtenberg³

et al. 2009

Microbiology

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Raman spectroscopy has previously been demonstrated to be a highly useful methodology for the identification and/or typing of micro-organisms. In this study, we set out to evaluate whether this technology could also be applied as a tool to discriminate between isolates of Mycoplasma pneumoniae, which is generally considered to be a genetically highly uniform species. In this evaluation, a total of 104 strains of M. pneumoniae were analysed, including two reference strains (strains M129 and FH), and 102 clinical isolates, which were isolated between 1973 and 2005 and originated from various countries. By Raman spectral analysis (Raman typing) of this strain collection, we were able to reproducibly distinguish six different clusters of strains. An unequivocal correlation between Raman typing and P1 genotyping, which is based on sequence differences in the P1 (or MPN141) gene of M. pneumoniae, was not observed. In the two major Raman clusters that we identified (clusters 3 and 6, which together harboured 81 % of the strains), the different P1 subtypes were similarly distributed, and~76 % isolates were of subtype 1,~20 % of subtype 2 and~5 % of variant 2a. Nevertheless, a relatively high prevalence of P1 subtype 2 strains was found in clusters 2 and 5 (100 %), as well as in cluster 1 (75 %) and cluster 4 (71 %); these clusters, however, harboured a small number of strains. Only two of the strains (2 %) could not be typed correctly. Interestingly, analysis of the Raman spectra revealed the presence of carotenoids in M. pneumoniae. This finding is in line with the identification of M. pneumoniae genes that have similarity with genes involved in a biochemical pathway leading to carotenoid synthesis, i.e. the 2-C-methyl-D-erythritol 4-phosphate (MEP) pathway. Therefore, we hypothesize that M. pneumoniae hosts an MEP-like pathway for carotenoid synthesis. We conclude that Raman spectroscopy is a convenient tool for discriminating between M. pneumoniae strains, and that it presents a promising supplement to the current methods for typing of this bacterium.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Raman spectroscopic typing reveals the presence of carotenoids in Mycoplasma pneumoniae

Maquelin

Hoogenboezem

Jachtenberg³

et al. 2009

Microbiology

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“…Questions have been raised, in turn, about the latter study since it did not address changes in fatty acyl composition in the protoplasts, any resultant maintenance of membrane fluidity, and consequently no changes in osmotic fragility (50). Other studies utilizing mutants of Acholeplasma laidlawii which do not synthesize carotenoids have shown that exogenous sterol can substitute for the carotenoids as a growth requirement (114,138,139,141). If membrane synthesis in Acholeplasma laidlawii is altered by variation in the growth medium to contain varying amounts of carotenoids, membrane rigidity is altered with a resultant increased fluidity and lower osmotic fragility as carotenoid content decreases (50).…”

Section: Function Of Bacterial Triterpenoidsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It thus appears that, in the majority of studies carried out to date, carotenoids can act as membrane stabilizers. In the case of Acholesplasma laidlawii, it should also be noted that the carotenoids in this organism have been characterized only by UV-visible spectrophotometric and chromatographic analysis methods (139,141). The problems associated with identifying carotenoids, and especially for distinguishing C30-from C40-carotenoids, by using such incomplete analysis have been discussed elsewhere (149).…”

Section: Function Of Bacterial Triterpenoidsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Bacterial triterpenoids.

Taylor¹

1984

Microbiological Reviews

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“…These components were identified as carotenoids and triglyceride. These lipids are common in all acholeplasmas including A. axanthum (13). Pigmented carotenoids were visualized easily by the yellow coloration of cell pellets.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…The serological cross-reactivity between A. oculi and these organisms can be accounted for by the identity of these lipids. Pigmented carotenoids and glycerides are neutral lipids common to all acholeplasmas including A. axanthum (13). The occurrence of identical lipids in Acholeplasma species possesses significant value for differentiation between the members of Acholeplasma and Mycoplasma.…”

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confidence: 99%

Lipid and lipopolysaccharide composition of Acholeplasma oculi

Al-Shammari¹,

Smith²

1979

J Bacteriol

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The total lipid content of Acholeplasma oculi comprises 13.3% of the dry weight of the organism and is about equally distributed between the neutral lipids plus glycolipids and the phospholipids. The phospholipids were identified as phosphatidyl glycerol and diphosphatidyl glycerol. The glycolipid fraction contained O-a-D-glucopyranosyl-(l --1)-2,3-diacyl glycerol and 0-a-D-glucopyranosyl-(1 -* 2)-O-a-D-glucopyranosyl-(1 -. 1)-2,3-diacyl glycerol. The neutral lipid contained pigmented carotenoids. Hot aqueous phenol extraction of lipid-extracted whole cells yielded a polymeric carbohydrate comprising 2.3% of the dry weight of the organism. The A. oculi lipopolysaccharide was found to contain only neutral sugars and no amino sugar, in contrast to other acholeplasmas. The neutral sugars consisted of fucose, galactose, and glucose in a ratio of 2:19:3.The occurrence of Acholeplasma oculi as a potential pathogen in goats was reported by Al-Aubaidi et al. (1). Isolation of this organism from horses (2) and camels (3) has been reported recently. Mycoplasmal components, such as glycolipids, phosphoglycolipids, and lipopolysaccharides, have been found (15) to be of significance not only because of their role in structure and function of membranes, but also because of their antigenic reactivity. This suggested their potential importance as specific antigenic determinants which could aid in the taxonomic classification of mycoplasmas. A. oculi was selected for study because this species is representative of a type not yet examined. The results show that the lipopolysaccharides of this organism are distinct from other acholeplasmas examined thus far.MATERIALS AND METHODS Growth of cells. A. oculi 19L was grown in tryptose broth containing 1% yeast extract, 1% glucose, and 1% (vol/vol) PPLO serum fraction (Difco Laboratories, Detroit, Mich.). The usual batch of organisms consisted of 90 liters of an 18-h-old culture stpted from 10% inoculum grown in the same liquid medium for multiple transfers. Incubation was carried out statically at 370C in 2-liter volumes contained in 3-liter flasks. Growth was followed by visual examination for turbidity. Prior to harvesting, cultures were checked to ensure purity. The organisms were harvested by concentration in a Sharples centrifuge, followed by sedimentation at 27,000 x g and 0°C in a Sorvall RC2B centrifuge. The sediment was washed in cold phosphate-buffered saline (0.2 M, pH 7.5) and lyophilized. Isotopic labeling was performed by growth of organisms in 100 ml of medium supplemented with 5 ,uCi of [2-'4C]mevalonic acid (specific activity, 20 mCi/ mmol), 2.5 MCi of [1-'4C]oleic acid (specific activity, 30 mCi/mmol), or 500,Ci of [32P]orthophosphate (carrier-free). Extraction of lipids and lipopolysaccharides.Lipids were extracted from lyophilized cells by stirring with 40 volumes of chloroform-methanol (2:1, vol/vol) at room temperature for 60 min. Methods for further purification and separation into major classes have been documented previously (10). The lipopolysaccharides were ex...

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Existence of carotenoids in Acholeplasma axanthum

Cited by 15 publications

References 15 publications

Raman spectroscopic typing reveals the presence of carotenoids in Mycoplasma pneumoniae

Raman spectroscopic typing reveals the presence of carotenoids in Mycoplasma pneumoniae

Bacterial triterpenoids.

Lipid and lipopolysaccharide composition of Acholeplasma oculi

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