Phospholipid analogues of Porphyromonas gingivalis

Porphyromonas has lipids containing hydroxy acids and C16:0 and iso‐C15:0 major monocarboxylic acids among others. Nothing is known of its individual phospholipid molecular species. The aim of this study was to determine molecular weights and putative identities of individual phospholipid molecular species extracted from Porphyromonas gingivalis (seven strains), P. asaccharolytica (one strain) and P. endodontalis (two strains). Cultures on Blood‐Fastidious Anaerobe Agar were harvested, washed and freeze‐dried. Phospholipids were extracted and separated by fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry (FAB MS) in negative‐ion mode. Phospholipid classes were also separated by thin layer chromatography (TLC). The major anions in the range m/z 209–299 were consistent with the presence of the C13 : 0, C15 : 0, C16 : 0 and C18 : 3 mono‐carboxylate anions. Major polar lipid anion peaks in the range m/z 618–961 were consistent with the presence of molecular species of phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol and with unidentified lipid analogues. Porphyromonas gingivalis differed from comparison strains of other species by having major anions with m/z 932, 946 and 960. Unusually, a feline strain of P. gingivalis had a major peak of m/z 736. Selected anions were studied by tandem FAB MS which revealed that peaks with m/z 653 and 946 did not correspond to commonly occurring classes of polar lipids. They were however, glycerophosphates. It is concluded that the polar lipid analogue profiles obtained with Porphyromonas are quite different from those of the genera Prevotella and Bacteroides but reveal heterogeneity within P. gingivalis.