Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Phospholipid Metabolism

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Malaria

  • 451 Accesses

Synonyms

Biosynthesis; Fatty acid; Glycerolipid; Glycerophospholipid; Lipid as drug targets; Lipid biology; Lipid composition; Membrane; Metabolic pathways; Metabolism; Phosphatidylcholine; Phosphatidylethanolamine; Phosphatidylinositol; Phosphoinositide; Phospholipid; Phospholipid composition; Phospholipid structure and function; Ptd-Ins

Definition

This review presents the structure composition, occurrence, biochemistry, and function of most types of lipids of the malaria-infected cells. It focuses on phospholipids, the metabolic pathways for their synthesis, and how the fatty acids are acquired and modified. Some pathways are also used as targets for antimalarial drugs.

Introduction

In all living organisms, membranes define the boundaries of cells and organelles and are constituted by lipid bilayers. From unicellular prokaryotes to multicellular eukaryotes, phospholipids (PL) are their basic building blocks. In addition to being essential structural membrane components, phospholipids...

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Institutional subscriptions

Abbreviations

ACBP:

Acyl-CoA-binding proteins

ACP:

Acyl carrier protein

ACS:

Acyl-CoA synthetase

ADP:

Adenosine bisphosphate

AGPAT:

1-Acyl-G3P acyltransferase

ATP:

Adenosine triphosphate

CCT, CTP:

Phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase

CDP:

Cytidine bisphosphate

CDP-Cho:

CDP-choline

CDP-DAG:

CDP-diacylglycerol

CDP-Etn:

CDP-ethanolamine

CDS:

CDP-DAG synthase

CEPT:

Choline/ethanolamine phosphotransferase

CK:

Choline kinase

CLS:

CL synthase

CPT:

Cholinephosphotransferase

CTP:

Cytidine triphosphate

CL:

Cardiolipin

CoA:

Coenzyme A

DAG:

Diacylglycerol

DHAP:

Dihydroxyacetone phosphate

DHAPAT:

DHAP acyltransferase

ECT, CTP:

Phosphoethanolamine cytidylyltransferase

EK:

Ethanolamine kinase

EPT:

Ethanolamine phosphotransferase

FA:

Fatty acid

FAE:

Fatty acid elongation

FASII:

Type II fatty acid synthesis

G3P:

Glycerol 3-phosphate

G3PAT:

G3P acyltransferase

GPI:

Glycosylphosphatidylinositol

IRBC:

Infected red blood cells

IP3 :

Inositol trisphosphate

NPP:

New permeation pathways

PA:

Phosphatidic acid

PAP, PA:

Phosphatase

PC:

Phosphatidylcholine

PE:

Phosphatidylethanolamine

PEMT:

PE N-methyltransferase

PG:

Phosphatidylglycerol

PGP:

Phosphatidylglycerophosphate

PGPPase:

PGP phosphatase

PGPS:

PGP synthase

PPI:

Phosphoinositides

PI:

Phosphatidylinositol

PI(3)P:

Phosphatidylinositol-3-phosphate

PI(3,4)P2:

Phosphatidylinositol-3,4-bisphosphate

PI(3,5)P2 :

Phosphatidylinositol-3,5-bisphosphate

PI(3,4,5)P3 or PIP3 :

Phosphatidylinositol-3,4,5-trisphosphate

PI(4)P:

Phosphatidylinositol-4-phosphate

PI(4,5)P2 or PIP2:

Phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate

PI-PLC:

Phosphoinositide-specific phospholipase C

PIS:

PI synthase

PL:

Phospholipid

PLD:

Phospholipase D

PLMT:

PL N-methyltransferase

PMT:

Phosphoethanolamine N-methyltransferase

PS:

Phosphatidylserine

PSD:

PS decarboxylase

PSS:

PS synthase

PSSE:

PS synthase via base exchange

RBC:

Red blood cells

SCD:

Stearoyl-CoA desaturase

SD:

Serine decarboxylase

SDPM:

Serine decarboxylase-phosphoethanolamine methyltransferase

SM:

Sphingomyelin

References

  • Aurrecoechea C, Brestelli J, Brunk BP, Dommer J, Fischer S, Gajria B, et al. PlasmoDB: a functional genomic database for malaria parasites. Nucleic Acids Res. 2009;37(Database issue):D539–43. Epub 2008/10/30.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Balla T. Phosphoinositides: tiny lipids with giant impact on cell regulation. Physiol Rev. 2013;93(3):1019–137. Epub 2013/08/01.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Dechamps S, Shastri S, Wengelnik K, Vial HJ. Glycerophospholipid acquisition in Plasmodium – a puzzling assembly of biosynthetic pathways. Int J Parasitol. 2010;40(12):1347–65. Epub 2010/07/06.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ginsburg H. Progress in in silico functional genomics: the malaria metabolic pathways database. Trends Parasitol. 2006;22(6):238–40. Epub 2006/05/19.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kirk K. Membrane transport in the malaria-infected erythrocyte. Physiol Rev. 2001;81(2):495–537.

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lykidis A. Comparative genomics and evolution of eukaryotic phospholipid biosynthesis. Prog Lipid Res. 2007;46(3–4):171–99. Epub 2007/05/22.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Matsumoto K. Phosphatidylserine synthase from bacteria. Biochim Biophys Acta. 1997;1348(1–2):214–27. Epub 1997/11/25.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ramakrishnan S, Serricchio M, Striepen B, Butikofer P. Lipid synthesis in protozoan parasites: a comparison between kinetoplastids and apicomplexans. Prog Lipid Res. 2013;52(4):488–512. Epub 2013/07/06.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Schuiki I, Daum G. Phosphatidylserine decarboxylases, key enzymes of lipid metabolism. IUBMB Life. 2009;61(2):151–62. Epub 2009/01/24.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • van Meer G, Voelker DR, Feigenson GW. Membrane lipids: where they are and how they behave. Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol. 2008;9(2):112–24. Epub 2008/01/25.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Vial HJ, Ancelin ML. Malarial lipids. An overview. Subcell Biochem. 1992;18:259–306.

    Article  PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Vial H, Ancelin M. Malarial lipids. In: Sherman I, editor. Malaria: parasite biology, biogenesis, protection. Washington, DC: ASM Press; 1998. p. 159–75.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vial HJ, Penarete D, Wein S, Caldarelli S, Fraisse L, Peyrottes S. Lipids as drug targets for malaria therapy. In: Becker K, editor. Apicomplexan parasites: molecular approaches toward targeted drug development. Weinheim: Wiley-VCH; 2011. p. 544.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory “Dynamics of Membrane Interactions in Normal and Pathological Cells”, CNRS UMR5235, Université Montpellier 2, Place Eugene Bataillon, 34095, Montpellier cedex 5, France

    Henri J. Vial & Kai Wengelnik

Authors
  1. Henri J. Vial
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Kai Wengelnik
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Henri J. Vial .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Heswall, United Kingdom

    Marcel Hommel

  2. Institut für Tropenmedizin, Universität Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany

    Peter G. Kremsner

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media New York

About this entry

Cite this entry

Vial, H.J., Wengelnik, K. (2014). Phospholipid Metabolism. In: Hommel, M., Kremsner, P. (eds) Encyclopedia of Malaria. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-8757-9_20-1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-8757-9_20-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-8757-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference MedicineReference Module Medicine

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation