[NMR paper] Identification of lipids and saccharides constituents of whole microalgal cells by 13C solid-state NMR.

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Identification of lipids and saccharides constituents of whole microalgal cells by 13C solid-state NMR.

Related Articles Identification of lipids and saccharides constituents of whole microalgal cells by 13C solid-state NMR.

Biochim Biophys Acta. 2014 Jul 24;

Authors: Arnold AA, Genard B, Zito F, Tremblay R, Warschawski DE, Marcotte I

Abstract
Microalgae are unicellular organisms which plasma membrane is protected by a complex cell wall. The chemical nature of this barrier is important for taxonomic identification, but also for interactions with exogenous molecules such as contaminants. In this work, we have studied freshwater (Chlamydomonas reinhardtii) and marine (Pavlova lutheri and Nannochloropsis oculata) microalgae with different cell wall characteristics. C. reinhardtii is covered by a network of fibrils and glycoproteins, while P. lutheri is protected by small cellulose scales, and the picoplankton N. oculata by a rigid cellulose wall. The objective of this work was to determine to what extent the different components of these microorganisms (proteins, carbohydrates, lipids) can be distinguished by (13)C solid-state NMR with an emphasis on isolating the signature of their cell walls and membrane lipid constituents. By using NMR experiments which select rigid or mobile zones, as well as (13)C-enriched microalgal cells, we improved the spectral resolution and simplified the highly crowded spectra. Interspecies differences in cell wall constituents, storage sugars and membrane lipid compositions were thus evidenced. Carbohydrates from the cell walls could be distinguished from those incorporated into sugar reserves or glycolipids. Lipids from the plasmalemma and organelle membranes and from storage vacuoles could also be identified. This work establishes a basis for a complete characterization of phytoplankton cells by solid-state NMR. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: NMR Spectroscopy for Atomistic Views of Biomembranes and Cell Surfaces.


PMID: 25065670 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]



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