Effect of lidocaine on phospholipid and fatty acid composition of bacterial membranes

The effects of lidocaine on chemical composition of membrane phospholipids and membrane fluidity of Streptococcus mutans have been studied. Increasing concentra-tions of lidocaine induced both an increase in cardiolipin and a decrease in the degree of unsaturation of its fatty acid composition. A lidocaine-dependent decrease of membrane fluidity was observed from an electron spin resonance spectroscopic study. It was considered thal bacteria grown with lidocaine below its minimum inhibitory concentration resisted the effect of the drug by modifying phospholipid and fatty acid composition resulting in a decreased membrane fluidity.     

Incorporation of fatty acids by Streptococcus mutans

In a series of investigations into the cariogenicity of Streptococcus mutans, we studied the incorporation of exogenous fatty acids with reference to glucosyltransferase secretion and membrane fatty acid changes. When cells were grown with different fatty acids, both saturated and unsaturated fatty acids were readily incorporated into the membrane lipids and were biotransformed and elongated preferentially to the longer 16- and 18-carbon-chain fatty acids. This incorporation and chain-elongation led to significant changes in fatty acids composition. By adding fatty acids to the medium, it was possible to appropriately modify the degree of unsaturation and the relative ratio between specific fatty acids in the membrane lipids of S. mutans.     

Maintenance of Membrane Fluidity during Development of Freezing Tolerance of Winter Wheat Seedlings

Fluidity of membrane lipids of shoot and root tissue and of chloroplasts from young wheat seedlings of contrasting freezing tolerance was investigated by measuring the motion and order parameters after spin labeling. A striking similarity was observed in membrane lipid fluidity of the five cultivars grown at 22 C. After cold hardening by growth at 2 C, a small change in membrane lipid fluidity was observed, but this was not correlated with the development of freezing tolerance, and there was no alteration in the transition temperature of membrane lipids. The results show that neither changes in membrane lipid fluidity nor transition temperature are a necessary feature of cold acclimation in wheat.     

Electron spin resonance studies of lipid fluidity changes in membranes of an uncoupler-resistant mutant of Escherichia coli

The fluidity of the lipids in membrane preparations from a mutant of Escherichia coli resistant to the uncoupler CCCP, grown at different temperatures with and without CCCP, was examined by electron spin resonance using the spin probe 5-doxyl stearic acid. The fluidity of the membrane lipids at the growth temperature, as estimated using electron spin resonance, was less in cells grown at lower temperatures. Precise homeoviscous adaptation was not observed. Growth in the presence of CCCP resulted in a decrease in membrane lipid fluidity, particularly in the inner (cytoplasmic) membrane. There was no change in the proportion of phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol and cardiolipin in the cell envelope. However, there was an increase in the proportion of unsaturated fatty acids in membranes from cells grown with uncoupler. This was reflected in the increased fluidity of the lipids extracted from these membranes. This result is contrary to that expected from measurements of the fluidity of the lipid in these membranes. The decreased fluidity of the lipid in these membranes may be a consequence of the observed increase in the ratio of protein to phospholipid.     

Effect of the viral proteins on the fluidity of the membrane lipids in Sindbis virus

The fluidity of the lipids in the membrane of Sindbis virus was studied by electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy. The lipids in the viral membrane are noticeably less fluid than the lipids in the membrane of the cells in which the virus was grown. This difference in fluidity is not due simply to differences in lipid composition but instead appears to be the result of the interaction of the viral proteins with the membrane lipids. This conclusion seems clear because (i) the viral lipids are more fluid after extraction with chloroform/methanol than in the lipid bilayer of the virion and because (ii) the viral membrane is made more fluid by proteolytic digestion of the viral glycoproteins.The possible role of this viral protein-mediated alteration of the physical state of membrane lipids in the maturation of Sindbis virions is discussed.     

Fluidity of bacterial membrane lipids monitored by intramolecular excimerization of 1.3-di(2-pyrenyl)propane

Intramolecular excimer formation of 1,3-di(2-pyrenyl)propane was used to study the fluidity of liposomes prepared from membrane polar lipids of Bacillus stearothermophilus. On the basis of spectral data, local polarity and polarizability parameters were established suggesting that the probe molecules are located well inside the membranes, but displaced towards the polar head groups of the phospholipid molecules. The excimerization rate is very sensitive to lipid phase transitions and pretransitions of synthetic pure lipid bilayers. In bacterial lipids from cultures grown at 55 and 68 degrees C, thermal profiles of excimer to monomer intensity ratios (I'/I) show a broad transition which is displaced to higher temperatures in response to the increase of the growth temperature; these results correlate well with differential scanning calorimetry data and fluorescence polarization of diphenylhexatriene. Additionally, lipid bilayers of bacteria grown at 68 degrees C exhibit a decreased membrane fluidity, as monitored by both fluorescent probes.     

Correlations between the thermal stability of chloroplast (thylakoid) membranes and the composition and fluidity of their polar lipids upon acclimation of the higher plant,Nerium oleander,to growth temperature

The thermal stability of excitation transfer from pigment proteins to the Photosystem II reaction center of Nerium oleander adjusts by 10 Celsius degrees when cloned plants grown at 20°C/15°C, day/night growth temperatures are shifted to 45°C/32°C growth temperature or vice versa. Concomitant with this adjustment is a decrease in the fluidity of thylakoid membrane polar lipids as determined by spin labeling. The results are consistent with the hypothesis that there is a limiting maximum fluidity compatible with maintenance of native membrane structure and function. This limiting fluidity was about the same as for a number of other species which exhibit a range of thermal stabilities. Inversely correlated shifts in lipid fluidity and thermal stability occurred during the time course of acclimation of N. oleander to new growth temperatures. Thus, the temperature at which the limiting fluidity was reached changed during acclimation while the limiting fluidity remained constant. Although the relative proportion of the major classes of membrane polar lipids remained constant during adjustments in fluidity, large changes occured in the abundance of specific fatty acids. These changes were different for the phospho- and galacto-lipids suggesting that the fatty acid composition of these two lipid classes is regulated by different mechanisms. Comparisons between membrane lipid fluidity and fatty acid composition indicate that fluidity is not a simple linear function of fatty acid composition.     

Effect of selected environmental and physico-chemical factors on bacterial cytoplasmic membranes

Membranes lipids are one of the most adaptable molecules in response to perturbations. Even subtle changes of the composition of acyl chains or head groups can alter the packing arrangements of lipids within the bilayer. This changes the balance between bilayer and nonbilayer lipids, serving to affect bilayer stability and fluidity, as well as altering lipid-protein interactions. External factors can also change membrane fluidity and lipid composition; including temperature, chemicals, ions, pressure, nutrients and the growth phase of the microbial culture. Various biophysical techniques have been used to monitor fluidity changes within the bacterial membrane. In this review, bacterial cytoplasmic membrane changes and related functional effects will be examined as well as the use of fluorescence polarization methods and examples of data obtained from research with bacteria.     

Influence of the growth at high osmolality on the lipid composition, water permeability and osmotic response of Lactobacillus bulgaricus

Changes in water permeability and membrane packing were measured in cells of Lactobacillus bulgaricus and in vesicles prepared with lipids extracted from them. The osmotic response of whole cells and vesicles is compared with the one of bacteria grown in a high osmolal medium. Both bacteria and vesicles, behave as osmometers. This means that the volume decrease is promoted by the outflow of water, driven by the NaCl concentration difference, arguing that neither Na+ nor Cl- permeates the cell or the lipid membrane in these conditions. Therefore, the volume changes can be correlated with the rate of water permeation across the cell or the vesicle membranes. The permeation of water was analyzed as a function of the lipid species by measuring the volume changes and the saturation ratio of the lipids. To put into relevance the membrane processes, the permeation properties of lipid vesicles prepared with lipids extracted from bacteria grown in normal and high osmolality conditions were also analyzed. The permeation response was correlated with the physical properties of the membrane of whole cells and vesicles, by means of fluorescence anisotropy of diphenyl hexatriene (DPH). The modifications in membrane properties are related with the changes in the membrane composition triggered by the growth in a high osmolal medium. The changes appear related to an increase in the sugar content of the whole pool of lipids and in the saturated fatty acid residues.     

Structure of membrane lipids and physico-biochemical properties of the plasma membrane from Thermoplasma acidophilum, adapted to growth at 37 degrees C.

Thermoplasma acidophilum, a mycoplasma-like organism, grows optimally at 56 degrees C and pH2. The low temperature extreme of growth is 37 degrees C. The plasma membrane of cells grown at 37 degrees C was isolated and characterized physicobiochemically. Membrane lipids which comprise 25% of the membrane dry weight consist mainly of two repetitively methyl-branched C40 side chains that were ether-linked to two glycerol molecules. The lipid structures were elucidated by combined gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy, direct probe mass spectroscopy and 13C NMR. 37 degrees C-grown cells contained lipids with 42% more pentane cyclization than the 56 degrees C-grown cells. In 37 degrees C-grown cells, phospholipid and serine content decreased by about 10% each, carbohydrate content increased by 5%. EPR studies demonstrated an increase in membrane lipid fluidity of 37 degrees C-grown cells with an upper transition temperature at 35 degrees C which was shifted down by 10 degrees C compared with cells grown at 56 degrees C. Membrane-bound ATPase activities also indicated similar changes upon adaptation. There is a close correlation between membrane fluidity and physiological functioning of this membrane-bound enzyme.     

Aging of the erythrocyte IV. Spin-label studies of membrane lipids,proteins and permeability

Spin-label studies demonstrated age-related alterations of the erythrocyte membrane concerning both lipid and protein components. Decrease in fluidity of membrane lipids correlated with decreased membrane permeability to a hydrophobic spin label TEMPO, permeability to a more hydrophilic TEMPOL being less affected. The rigidification of membrane lipids was much more pronounced in whole membranes than in liposomes composed of membrane lipids, suggesting changes in lipid-protein interactions as an important factor in the decrease of lipid fluidity in aged red cells. ESR spectra of membrane-bound maleimide spin label evidenced alterations in the state of membrane proteins during cell aging in vivo.     

Aging of the erythrocyte. IV. Spin-label studies of membrane lipids, proteins and permeability

Spin-label studies demonstrated age-related alterations of the erythrocyte membrane concerning both lipid and protein components. Decrease in fluidity of membrane lipids correlated with decreased membrane permeability to a hydrophobic spin label TEMPO, permeability to a more hydrophilic TEMPOL being less affected. The rigidification of membrane lipids was much more pronounced in whole membranes than in liposomes composed of membrane lipids, suggesting changes in lipid-protein interactions as an important factor in the decrease of lipid fluidity in aged red cells. ESR spectra of membrane-bound maleimide spin label evidenced alterations in the state of membrane proteins during cell aging in vivo.     

Temperature-dependent changes in phospholipid and fatty acid composition and membrane lipid fluidity of Yersinia enterocolitica

Temperature-dependent compositional changes of phospholipids and their fatty acids were analysed in Yersinia enterocolitica grown at 5°, 25° and 37°C. The relative amounts of the four phospholipids, phosphatidylethanolamine (75–78%), phosphatidylglycerol (10–11%), cardiolipin (<7%) and lysophosphatidylethanolamine (<5%), were essentially the same at all growth temperatures. The degree of fatty acid unsaturation of the four phospholipids increased with decrease in growth temperature, mainly due to an increase of C_16:1 and C_18:1 and a corresponding decrease of C_16;0, C_18:0 and cyclo C_17:0. An electron spin resonance spectroscopic study of the membrane lipids showed that membrane lipid fluidity was enhanced by decreasing the growth temperatures. The changes in fatty acid composition of phospholipids in response to varied temperatures were consistent with the temperature-dependent changes in the membrane lipid fluidity of Y. enterocolitica , and were similar to those reported for other bacteria.     

Effect of carbohydrates on fructosyltransferase expression and distribution in Streptococcus mutans GS-5 biofilms

Streptococcus mutans produces a fructosyltransferase (FTF) enzyme, which synthesizes fructan polymers from sucrose. Fructans contribute to the virulence of the biofilm by acting as binding sites for S. mutans adhesion and as extracellular nutrition reservoir for the oral bacteria. Antibodies raised against a recombinant S. mutans FTF were used to test the effect of glucose, fructose, and sucrose on FTF expression in S. mutans GS-5 biofilms. Biofilms formed in the presence of fructose and glucose showed a higher ratio of FTF compared to biofilms formed in the presence of sucrose. Confocal laser scanning microscopy images of S. mutans biofilms indicated a carbohydrate-dependent FTF distribution. The layer adjacent to the surface and those at the liquid interface displayed high amounts cell-free FTF with limited amount of bacteria while the in-between layers demonstrated both cell-free FTF and cells expressing cell-surface FTF. Biofilm of S. mutans grown on hydroxyapatite surfaces expressed several FTF bands with molecular masses of 160, 125, 120, 100, and 50 kDa, as detected by using FTF specific antibodies. The results show that FTF expression and distribution in S. mutans GS-5 biofilms is carbohydrate regulated.     

Use of fluorescence polarization to monitor intracellular membrane changes during temperature acclimation. Correlation with lipid compositional and ultrastructural changes.

Fluorescence polarization of 1,6-diphenylhexatriene (DPH) was used to study the effects of temperature acclimation on Tetrahymena membranes. The physical properties of membrane lipids were found to be highly dependent on cellular growth temperature. DPH polarization in lipids from three different membrane fractions correlated well with earlier freeze-fracture and electron spin resonance observations showing that membrane fluidity progressively decreases in the order microsomes greater than pellicles greater than cilia throughout a wide range of growth temperatures. Changes in membrane lipid fluidity following a shift from high to low growth temperatures proceed rapidly in the microsomes, whereas there is a pronounced lag in the changes of peripheral cell membrane lipids. These data support previous observations that adaptive changes in membrane fluidity proceed via lipid modifications in the endoplasmic reticulum, followed by dissemination of lipid components to other cell membranes. The rapid changes in polarization observed in the microsomal lipids following a temperature shift correspond closely with the time-dependent alterations in both lipid fatty acid composition and freeze-fracture patterns of membrane particle distribution, suggesting that, in the endoplasmic reticulum, lipid phase separation is the primary cause of membrane particle rearrangements.     

Growth in excess copper induces changes in the lipid composition and fluidity of PSII-enriched membranes in wheat

Changes in the lipid composition and fluidity of PSII-enriched thylakoids were studied in seedlings of wheat ( Triticum durum Desf. cv. Adamello) grown in nutrient solution supplemented with CuSO₄ to achieve a final concentration of 10 and 50 μ M Cu. Metal content increased in the chloroplasts of the 50 μ M Cu-grown plants. PSII isolated from wheat supplied with 10 μ M Cu did not show any alteration in the lipid composition or in the lipid and protein levels of the membranes, nor was any change in the ultrastructure of the membranes detected. The 50 μ M Cu-grown plants showed thylakoid swelling, particularly in the stroma and terminal grana thylakoids. Furthermore, an alteration in the lipid composition of PSII preparations was observed together with a decrease in the lipid content, which resulted in a reduction in the lipid to protein ratio. The monogalactosyldiacylglycerol (MGDG) to digalactosyldiacylglycerol (DGDG) molar ratio decreased, whereas the degradation of the polar lipids caused an accumulation of free fatty acids (FFA). The total amount of unsaturated lipids associated with the PSII-enriched membranes of wheat was not affected by excess copper supplies, even though changes in the individual fatty acids occurred. The effect of copper on the fluidity of PSII membranes was evaluated by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements, using spin-probed fatty acids as probes. The PSII membranes, spin probed by means of 5- and 16-doxylstearic acids, showed that only the fluidity of the surface region of the bilayer close to the polar head group was reduced following the 50 μ M Cu supply. In contrast, the fluidity of the inner membrane region of the bilayer did not show any change. The implications of changes in the lipid composition and lipid-protein interactions on the fluidity of specific transversal membrane regions are discussed.     

Correlative changes in sucrose uptake, ATPase activity and membrane fluidity in carnation petals during senescence

Apparent sucrose uptake. ATPase activity and membrane fluidity changes were studied during the development and senescence of carnation flowers ( Dianthus caryophyllus L., cv. Cerise Royallette). Typical changes associated with senescence of a cut flower, such as respiration, ethylene production and fresh weight, were measured. Concomitant with a rise in respiration and ethylene production and a decline in fresh weight, a sharp decrease in apparent sucrose uptake was observed. Sucrose uptake was pH dependent (pH optimum, 5.5) and influenced by membrane integrity. Apparently, the activity of ATPase is related to sucrose uptake, because similar changes occurred during flower development. In addition, the activity of ATPase was well correlated with membrane fluidity.
It is suggested that sucrose uptake is controlled by ATPase activity, which in turn is modulated by membrane lipid fluidity. The decline in membrane fluidity associated with senescence leads to a corresponding reduction in ATPase activity and sucrose uptake. Further evidence supporting this view comes from experiments in which senescence was enhanced by 1-aminocyclopropane-l-carboxylic acid. It shortened the time to decline in fresh weight, rise in respiration and ethylene production. In parallel, reduction in membrane fluidity, ATPase activity and sucrose uptake were observed.     

Fluorescence-polarization measurements on normal and mutant human skin fibroblasts

Measurements of fluorescence polarization in intact diploid skin fibroblasts after exposure to 1,6-diphenyl-1,3,5-hexatriene were used to estimate the fluidity of the lipid phase(s) of cellular membranes. The membrane lipids of cells derived from four patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia were in a more fluid state than those of cells obtained from 13 other individuals of normal and nonrelated mutant genotypes when all cultures were grown on medium with native serum. The only other cell type having membrane lipids of increased fluidity under these conditions was one fibroblast line derived from a patient with the Lesch-Nyhan syndrome. Examination of two additional nonconsanguinous lines of Lesch-Nyhan fibroblasts, however, revealed that an abnormally high level of lipid fluidity was not a common property of the membranes of cells of this genotype. Incubation of cultures in medium containing lipid-depleted serum (virtually devoid of lipoprotein-bound sterol) caused a reversible increase in the fluidity of the membranes of normal cells to values similar to those of the hypercholesterolemic cells, but had no effect on the membranelipid fluidity of the latter. By contrast, exposure of cultures to cholesterol not bound to lipoprotein in serum-free medium resulted in a decrease in the lipid fluidity of the membranes of both normo- and hypercholesterolemic fibroblasts.     

Effects of Tween 80 and sodium fluoride on extracellular glucosyltransferase production and membrane lipids of Streptococcus mutans

1. Both Tween 80 and sodium fluoride significantly enhanced total extracellular glucosyltransferase activities of Streptococcus mutans. 2. Water-insoluble and water-soluble glucan formation were uniformly increased by Tween 80, whereas fluoride stimulated only water-soluble glucan formation. 3. Elevated glucan formation was due to an increase in enzymes secreted from bacterial cells. 4. Fatty acid composition and phospholipid content in bacterial membrane were changed by Tween 80, although sodium fluoride scarcely showed these changes. 5. Comparative results suggest that modulation of membrane lipids participates in mutansucrase production but not in dextransucrase production of S. mutans.     

Involvement of Membrane Lipids in Cold Shock-induced Autolysis of Bacillus subtilis Cells

Exponentially growing Bacillus subtilis cells autolysed when exposed to cold shock treatment in minimal medium followed by incubation at 37°C. From characteristics of the lysis, it was suggested that the cold-shock-induced cell lysis resulted from the perturbation of membrane organization that is initiated by rapid changes in temperature, lipid phase transitions. For maximum lysis induction to occur, in addition to rapid cooling to 5°C or lower, retention at temperatures lower than 10°C for at least 20 min is required. The cell sensitivity to the autolysis induction by cold shock was different between cells grown at 25°C and cells grown at 37°C. Analyses of the fatty acid composition and the phase transition temperature of membrane lipids suggested that the membrane fluidity may affect the autolysis induction. Experiments to discover the effects of cerulenin treatment and lipid addition on autolysis induction and the autolysin activity level support the hypothesis that membrane lipids are involved in cold-shock-induced cell autolysis.