Lipid Biosynthesis

DIEGO DE MENDOZA; GUSTAVO E. SCHUJMAN

Reference Module in Biomedical Sciences

Elsevier

Lugar: Oxford; Año: 2014; p. 2444 - 2555

The study of membrane lipids of the model organisms Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis has contributed greatly to our understanding of the synthesis and the functions of membrane lipids in bacteria. This review of lipid synthesis in these organisms is conveniently divided into two parts: (1) the synthesis of fatty acids, which are responsible for the characteristic hydrophobicity of lipids and (2) the attachment of the completed fatty acids to glycerol phosphate followed by the addition and modification of the polar head to yield the major cellular phospholipids. Then we discuss the variations of this basic theme that give rise to the diversity of products produced by the pathways in both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. These include multiple mechanisms to generate unsaturated fatty acids and the accessory components required for branched-chain and cyclopropane fatty acids. Finally, the principal genetic and biochemical processes that are responsible for membrane lipid homeostasis in bacteria are reviewed.