Sphingolipids from Basidiomycetes Pleurotus ostreatus
Vilko Ondrušek*
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, School of Medicine, University of Zagreb, Šalata 3, HR-10000 Zagreb, Croatia
Article history:
Received April 22, 1999
Accepted June 14, 1999
Key words:
basidiomycete, sphingolipid, ceramide
Summary:
Previous studies have shown Basidiomycetes to contain various types of sphingolipids, especially ceramides and cerebrosides. The aim of the study was to investigate the composition of the ceramides from this particular fungus, and to find the optimal method of their isolation. The basidiomycete Pleurotus ostreatus was collected as a wild-growing fungus. Lipid extraction was performed from fresh fungus. Using a combination of chloroform and methanol solvents, lipids were separated applying column chromatography and TLC. The degradation of isolated ceramides was performed by methanolysis, and fatty acids and long-chain bases were isolated and identified by TLC and GLC. Ceramides and cerebrosides of the fungus Pleurotus ostreatus were detected. Eight groups of ceramides were isolated according to their Rf values on TLC. The isolated ceramides contained amide bound fatty acids that were identified by GLC after methanolysis. Saturated and unsaturated, 2-hydroxy and non-hydroxy fatty acids, with chain length of C10–C24 were found.
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