Glycosphingolipids of the model fungus Aspergillus nidulans

Beau Bennion; Chaeho Park; Matthew Fuller; Rebecca Lindsey; Michelle Momany; Richard Jennemann; Steven B. Levery

Journal of Lipid Research (Nov 2003)

Glycosphingolipids of the model fungus Aspergillus nidulans

Beau Bennion,
Chaeho Park,
Matthew Fuller,
Rebecca Lindsey,
Michelle Momany,
Richard Jennemann,
Steven B. Levery

Affiliations

Beau Bennion: Department of Chemistry, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824-3598; The Complex Carbohydrate Research Center and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Department of Plant Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Abteilung für Zelluläre und Molekuläre Pathologie, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum-Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, D69120, Heidelberg, Germany
Chaeho Park: Department of Chemistry, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824-3598; The Complex Carbohydrate Research Center and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Department of Plant Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Abteilung für Zelluläre und Molekuläre Pathologie, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum-Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, D69120, Heidelberg, Germany
Matthew Fuller: Department of Chemistry, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824-3598; The Complex Carbohydrate Research Center and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Department of Plant Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Abteilung für Zelluläre und Molekuläre Pathologie, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum-Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, D69120, Heidelberg, Germany
Rebecca Lindsey: Department of Chemistry, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824-3598; The Complex Carbohydrate Research Center and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Department of Plant Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Abteilung für Zelluläre und Molekuläre Pathologie, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum-Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, D69120, Heidelberg, Germany
Michelle Momany: Department of Chemistry, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824-3598; The Complex Carbohydrate Research Center and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Department of Plant Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Abteilung für Zelluläre und Molekuläre Pathologie, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum-Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, D69120, Heidelberg, Germany
Richard Jennemann: Department of Chemistry, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824-3598; The Complex Carbohydrate Research Center and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Department of Plant Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Abteilung für Zelluläre und Molekuläre Pathologie, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum-Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, D69120, Heidelberg, Germany
Steven B. Levery: Department of Chemistry, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824-3598; The Complex Carbohydrate Research Center and Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Department of Plant Biology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602-7229; Abteilung für Zelluläre und Molekuläre Pathologie, Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum-Heidelberg, Im Neuenheimer Feld 280, D69120, Heidelberg, Germany

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 44, no. 11
pp. 2073 – 2088

Abstract

Read online

Aspergillus nidulans is a well-established nonpathogenic laboratory model for the opportunistic mycopathogen, A. fumigatus. Some recent studies have focused on possible functional roles of glycosphingolipids (GSLs) in these fungi. It has been demonstrated that biosynthesis of glycosylinositol phosphorylceramides (GIPCs) is required for normal cell cycle progression and polarized growth in A. nidulans (Cheng, J., T.-S. Park, A. S. Fischl, and X. S. Ye. 2001. Mol. Cell Biol. 21: 6198–6209); however, the structures of A. nidulans GIPCs were not addressed in that study, nor were the functional significance of individual structural variants and the downstream steps in their biosynthesis. To initiate such studies, acidic GSL components (designated An-2, -3, and -5) were isolated from A. nidulans and subjected to structural characterization by a combination of one-dimensional (1-D) and 2-D NMR spectroscopy, electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (ESI-MS), ESI-MS/collision-induced decomposition-MS (MS/CID-MS), ESI-pseudo-[CID-MS]2, and gas chromatography-MS methods.All three were determined to be GIPCs, with mannose as the only monosaccharide present in the headgroup glycans; An-2 and An-3 were identified as di- and trimannosyl inositol phosphorylceramides (IPCs) with the structures Manα1→3Manα1→2Ins1-P-1Cer and Manα1→3(Manα1→6)Manα1→2Ins1-P-1Cer, respectively (where Ins = myo-inositol, P = phosphodiester, and Cer = ceramide). An-5 was partially characterized, and is proposed to be a pentamannosyl IPC, based on the trimannosyl core structure of An-3.

Published in Journal of Lipid Research

ISSN: 0022-2275 (Print); 1539-7262 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: United States
LCC subjects: Science: Chemistry: Organic chemistry: Biochemistry
Website: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-lipid-research

About the journal

Abstract

Keywords