Phosphatidate synthesis

The enzymes for phosphatidate synthesis, acyl CoA synthetase, glycerol 3-phosphate acyltransferase and monoacylglycerol acyltransferase, are on both the outer mitochondrial membrane and the endoplasmic reticulum membrane. Diacylglycerol acyltransferase is only on the endoplasmic reticulum it may use either diacylglycerol phosphate synthesized on the endoplasmic reticulum or that synthesized on the mitochondrion. Triacylglycerol synthesized on the endoplasmic reticulum membrane may then enter lipid droplets either in the cytosol or, in the liver and intestinal mucosa, the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum for assembly into lipoproteins - chylomicrons in the intestinal mucosa (section 4.3.2.2) and very low-density lipoprotein in the liver (section 5.6.2). 

The fact that phosphatide fatty acids of different tissues can be replaced only partly by elaidic acid alone restricts the applicability of elaidic acid as indicator. Not more than 30% of phosphatide fatty acids of liver and of small intestine can be replaced by elaidic acid, and not more than 7% of those of brain and still less in testes can thus be replaced. Furthermore, in order to obtain quantitative results from experiments carried out with elaidic acid as indicator, we should know, beside the elaidic acid content of the phosphatides, the elaidic acid content of the fatty acid mixture available for phosphatide synthesis in cells of the organ. Lack of knowledge of the concentration of the tracer in the precursor of the compound whose rate of formation we wish to determine is the greatest obstacle in the application of isotopic and nonisotopic indicators to determination of turnover rate. 

FIGURE 25.18 Synthesis of glycerolipids in eukaryotes begins with the formation of phosphatidic acid, which may be formed from dihydroxyace-tone phosphate or glycerol as shown. 

Tang, J.-C., Tropp, B.E., Engel, R., and Rosenthal, A.F., Isosteres of natural phosphates. 4. The synthesis of phosphonic acid analogues of phosphatidic acid and acyldihydroxyacetone phosphate, Chem. Phys. Lipids, 17, 169, 1976. 

Pittner, R.A., Fears, R. and Brindley, D.N. (1985). Effects of glucocorticoids and insulin on activities of phosphatidate phosphohydrolase, tyrosine aminotransferase and glycerol kinase in isolated rat hepatocytes in relation to the control of triacyglycerol synthesis and gluconeogenesis. Biochem. J. 225 455—462. 

A recent report suggests that inhibition of PC synthesis constitutes one of the primary events by which C2-ceramide triggers apoptosis (Ramos et al, 2000). Treatment of cerebral granule neurons with C2-ceramide resulted in a rapid (within 1 hour) reduction in PC biosynthesis, whereas only 6 h after exposure to the agonists the first significant drop in cell viability was observed. The authors further showed that addition of exogenous PC resulted in a dose-dependent full prevention of neuronal death. This was specific for PC, because addition of other glycerohpids Uke, PE, PS, phosphatidylinositol and phosphatidic acid had no effect on C2-ceramide-induced apoptosis. 

FIGURE 21-18 Phosphatidic acid in lipid biosynthesis. Phosphatidic acid is the precursor of both triacylglycerols and glycerophospholipids. The mechanisms for head-group attachment in phospholipid synthesis are described later in this section. 

The first steps of glycerophospholipid synthesis are shared with the pathway to triacylglycerols (Fig. 21-17) two fatty acyl groups are esterified to C-l and C-2 of L-glycerol 3-phosphate to form phosphatidic acid. Commonly but not invariably, the fatty acid at C-l is saturated and that at C-2 is unsaturated. A second route to phosphatidic acid is the phosphorylation of a diacyl-glycerol by a specific kinase. 

In many in vitro studies the acylation of the sn-3 position appears to be the rate-limiting step in TG synthesis. It has been suggested that the intracellular concentration of medium chain fatty acids may limit the final acylation reaction in TG synthesis (Dimmena and Emery 1981). Another theory is that the concentration of phosphatidate phosphatase, the enzyme that hydrolyzes the phosphate bond in phospha-tidic acid, yielding DG, may be the limiting factor (Moore and Christie 1978). The DG acyltransferase responsible for the final acylation of milk TG has been studied in mammary tissue from lactating rats (Lin et al. 1976). It was observed to be specific for the sn-1,2 DG, with very little activity observed with the sn-1,3 or sn-2,3 DG. It exhibited a broad specificity for acyl donors. The acyl-CoA specificity was not affected by the type of 1,2 DG acceptor offered, which implies that the type of fatty acid introduced into the glycerol backbone was not influenced by the specificity of subsequent acylation steps. However, the concentration of acyl donors will affect the final acylation. It was ob-... 

Figure 21-3 Major pathways of synthesis of fatty acids and glycerolipids in the green plant Arabidopsis. The major site of fatty acid synthesis is chloroplasts. Most is exported to the cytosol as oleic acid (18 1). After conversion to its coenzyme A derivative it is converted to phosphatidic acid (PA), diacylglycerol (DAG), and the phospholipids phosphatidylcholine (PC), phosphatidylinositol (PI), phosphatidylglycerol (PG), and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE). Desaturation also occurs, and some linoleic and linolenic acids are returned to the chloroplasts. See text also. From Sommerville and Browse.106 See also Figs. 21-4 and 21-5. Other abbreviations monogalactosyldiacylglycerol (MGD), digalactosyldiacylglycerol (DGD), sulfolipid (SL), glycerol 3-phosphate (G3P), lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), acyl carrier protein (ACP), cytidine diphosphate-DAG (CDP-DAG).

Synthesis of most phospholipids starts from glycerol-3-phosphate, which is formed in one step from the central metabolic pathways, and acyl-CoA, which arises in one step from activation of a fatty acid. In two acylation steps the key compound phosphatidic acid is formed. This can be converted to many other lipid compounds as well as CDP-diacylglycerol, which is a key branchpoint intermediate that can be converted to other lipids. Distinct routes to phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylcholine are found in prokaryotes and eukaryotes. The pathway found in eukaryotes starts with transport across the plasma membrane of ethanolamine and/or choline. The modified derivatives of these compounds are directly condensed with diacylglycerol to form the corresponding membrane lipids. Modification of the head-groups or tail-groups on preformed lipids is a common reaction. For example, the ethanolamine of the head-group in phosphatidylethanolamine can be replaced in one step by serine or modified in 3 steps to choline. 

The first phase of phospholipid synthesis in E. coli and eukaryotes. Additional routes to and from phosphatidic acid, found predominantly in eukaryotes, are shown in brackets. 

In the first phase of phospholipid synthesis from glyc-erol-3-phosphate to phosphatidic acid, the pathways in E. coli and eukaryotes are very similar (see fig. 19.2). The major difference is that one additional pathway exists for generation of phosphatidic acid from dihydroxyacetone phosphate, an intermediate in glycolysis. Once phosphatidic acid is made, it is rapidly converted to diacylglycerol or CDP-diacylglycerol (see fig. 19.2) both of which are intermediates for the biosynthesis of eukaryotic phospholipids. 

Lipid synthesis is unique in that it is almost exclusively localized to the surface of membrane structures. The reason for this restriction is the amphipathic nature of the lipid molecules. Phospholipids are biosynthesized by acylation of either glycerol-3-phosphate or dihydroxyacetone phosphate to form phosphatidic acid. This central intermediate can be converted into phospholipids by two different pathways. In one of these, phosphatidic acid reacts with CTP to yield CDP-diacylglycerol, which in bacteria is converted to phosphatidylserine, phosphatidylglycerol, or diphos-... 

Some General Comments. Although a number of chemical methods for the synthesis of various phosphatidic acids have been published, these procedures are often of low yield and require a deft hand for organic chemical methodology. However, there are several commercial suppliers who have available pure, well-defined phosphatidic acids for research investigations. 

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