Premium
Composition and biosynthesis of sterols in selected marine phytoplankton
Author(s) -
Lin Don S.,
Ilias Ajmal M.,
Connor William E.,
Caldwell Richard S.,
Therese Cory H.,
Doyle Daves G.
Publication year - 1982
Publication title -
lipids
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.601
H-Index - 120
eISSN - 1558-9307
pISSN - 0024-4201
DOI - 10.1007/bf02535359
Subject(s) - phytoplankton , sterol , isochrysis galbana , botany , chemistry , cholesterol , chlorophyta , biology , algae , chromatography , food science , biochemistry , nutrient , ecology
Six species of phytoplankton, Pseudoisochrysis paradoxa, Isochrysis galbana, Monochrysis lutheri, Platymonas suecica, Thalassiosira fluviatilis and a Chaetoceros species, were cultured in the laboratory and their sterol contents analyzed utilizing digitonin precipitation, thin layer and gas chromatography and gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry. A total of 7 sterols were found in phytoplankton. The occurrence of these sterols, cholest‐5‐en‐3β‐ol, cholest‐5,22‐dien‐3β‐ol, 24‐methylcholesta‐5,24(28)‐dien‐3β‐ol, 24‐methylcholest‐5‐en‐3β‐ol, 24‐methylcholesta‐5,22‐dien‐3β‐ol, 24‐ethylcholest‐5‐en‐3β‐ol and 24‐ethylcholest‐5,22‐dien‐3β‐ol, differed significantly among the various phytoplankton species. Cultures of P. paradoxa biosynthesized both of the sterols found in this species when incubated in the presence of 14 C‐ or 3 H‐mevalonic acid for 0.5–9 days. These sterols were cholesterol and 24‐methylcholesta‐5,22‐dien‐3β‐ol. Since 5 of the sterols found in the phytoplankton commonly occur in mollusks which feed on phytoplankton, it is likely that at least some of the tissue sterols in mollusks are of dietary origin.