Multiplatform Mass Spectrometry-Based Approach Identifies Extracellular Glycolipids of the Yeast Rhodotorula babjevae UCDFST 04-877

J Nat Prod. 2016 Oct 28;79(10):2580-2589. doi: 10.1021/acs.jnatprod.6b00497. Epub 2016 Sep 26.

Abstract

A multiplatform mass spectrometry-based approach was used for elucidating extracellular lipids with biosurfactant properties produced by the oleaginous yeast Rhodotorula babjevae UCDFST 04-877. This strain secreted 8.6 ± 0.1 g/L extracellular lipids when grown in a benchtop bioreactor fed with 100 g/L glucose in medium without addition of hydrophobic substrate, such as oleic acid. Untargeted reversed-phase liquid chromatography-quadrupole/time-of-flight mass spectrometry (QTOFMS) detected native glycolipid molecules with masses of 574-716 Da. After hydrolysis into the fatty acid and sugar components and hydrophilic interaction chromatography-QTOFMS analysis, the extracellular lipids were found to consist of hydroxy fatty acids and sugar alcohols. Derivatization and chiral separation gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) identified these components as d-arabitol, d-mannitol, (R)-3-hydroxymyristate, (R)-3-hydroxypalmitate, and (R)-3-hydroxystearate. In order to assemble these substructures back into intact glycolipids that were detected in the initial screen, potential structures were in-silico acetylated to match the observed molar masses and subsequently characterized by matching predicted and observed MS/MS fragmentation using the Mass Frontier software program. Eleven species of acetylated sugar alcohol esters of hydroxy fatty acids were characterized for this yeast strain.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry
  • Glycolipids / chemistry*
  • Glycolipids / isolation & purification*
  • Lipids / chemistry*
  • Molecular Structure
  • Rhodotorula / chemistry*
  • Sugar Alcohols / chemistry
  • Tandem Mass Spectrometry / methods*

Substances

  • Glycolipids
  • Lipids
  • Sugar Alcohols
  • arabitol