Glycosylinositolphosphoceramides in Aspergillus fumigatus

Glycobiology. 2008 Jan;18(1):84-96. doi: 10.1093/glycob/cwm122. Epub 2007 Oct 30.

Abstract

Fungal glycosylinositolphosphoceramides (GIPCs) are involved in cell growth and fungal-host interactions. In this study, six GIPCs from the mycelium of the human pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus were purified and characterized using Q-TOF mass spectrometry and 1H, 13C, and 31P NMR. All structures have the same inositolphosphoceramide moiety with the presence of a C(18:0)-phytosphingosine conjugated to a 2-hydroxylated saturated fatty acid (2-hydroxy-lignoceric acid). The carbohydrate moiety defines two types of GIPC. The first, a mannosylated zwitterionic glycosphingolipid contains a glucosamine residue linked in alpha1-2 to an inositol ring that has been described in only two other fungal pathogens. The second type of GIPC presents an alpha-Manp-(1-->3)-alpha-Manp-(1-->2)-IPC common core. A galactofuranose residue is found in four GIPC structures, mainly at the terminal position via a beta1-2 linkage. Interestingly, this galactofuranose residue could be substituted by a choline-phosphate group, as observed only in the GIPC of Acremonium sp., a plant pathogen.

MeSH terms

  • Aspergillus fumigatus / chemistry*
  • Aspergillus fumigatus / metabolism
  • Glycosphingolipids / chemistry*
  • Glycosphingolipids / isolation & purification
  • Glycosphingolipids / metabolism
  • Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Biomolecular
  • Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization

Substances

  • Glycosphingolipids
  • inositolphosphoceramides