Introduction

The chief objective of this article is to provide an up to datereview on ether lipids that belong to the class of 1-O-alkylsn-glycerols. After a brief introduction the main emphasis islaid on 1-O-alkyl-sn-glycerols and their 1-O-(2-methoxyalkyl)-sn-glycerol analogues. The occurrence and distribution of thesecompounds in nature, their chemical structure and molecularvariety, their biosynthesis and chemical synthesis, and their various biological effects, are described, discussed and extensivelyreviewed. Finally, their well-known analogues, the plateletactivating factors (PAF) and the plasmalogens, are also brieflydescribed and put into context with these ether lipids.Ether lipids cover a great variety of lipid compounds carryingan ether linkage. Glycerol based ether lipids are normally minorconstituents of most cell membranes in mammals, but in contrary,major components in archaeal cellmembranes. Indeed, some fish ofthe Chondrichthyes class accumulate high amounts of ether lipidsin their liver. The most prevalent glycerol ether backbones foundin nature consist of an O-alkyl or O-alk-1-enyl group attached toglycerol at position sn-1 (Fig. 1) (Mangold and Paltauf, 1983).The absolute configuration of the chiral carbon atom locatedat the mid-position of the glycerol moiety is designated by thestereospecific numbering (sn). That terminology is based on thepro-S methylene carbon of the prochiral glycerol molecule beingdesignated as the sn-1 position, the central carbon atom as thesn-2 position and the pro-R methylene group carbon as the sn-3position.Accordingly,the naturally occurring 1-O-alkyl-sn-glycerolterm implies that the ether alkyl chain...

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