Copepod Lipidomics: Fatty Acid Substituents of Structural Lipids in <i>Labidocerca aestiva</i>, a Dominant Species in the Food Chain of the Apalachicola Estuary of the Gulf of Mexico

Zooplanktonic copepods represent a major biological mass in the marine food chain that can be affected by climate change. Monitoring the health of this critical biomass is essential for increasing our understanding of the impact of environmental changes on marine environments. Since the lipidomes of...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Paul L. Wood, Stan C. Kunigelis
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2024-12-01
Series:Life
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/15/1/43
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1832588146600050688
author Paul L. Wood
Stan C. Kunigelis
author_facet Paul L. Wood
Stan C. Kunigelis
author_sort Paul L. Wood
collection DOAJ
description Zooplanktonic copepods represent a major biological mass in the marine food chain that can be affected by climate change. Monitoring the health of this critical biomass is essential for increasing our understanding of the impact of environmental changes on marine environments. Since the lipidomes of marine organisms are known to adapt to alterations in pH, temperature, and availability of metabolic precursors, lipidomics is one technology that can be used for monitoring copepod adaptations. Among the key lipid parameters that can be monitored are the fatty acid substituents of glycerolipids and glycerophospholipids. We utilized high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry (≤2 ppm mass error) to characterize the fatty acid substituents of triacylglycerols, glycerophosphocholines, ceramides, and sphingomyelins of <i>Labidocerca aestiva</i>. This included monitoring for furan fatty acid substituents, a family of fatty acids unique to marine organisms. These data will contribute to establishing a lipid database of the fatty acid substituents of essential structural lipids. The key findings were that polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) were only major substituents in glycerophosphocholines with 36 to 44 carbons. Triacylglycerols, ceramides, and sphingomyelins contained minimal PUFA substituents. Furan fatty acids were limited to mono- and di-acylglycerols. In summary, we have built a baseline database of the fatty acid substituents of key structural lipids in <i>Labidocerca aestiva</i>. With this database, we will next evaluate potential seasonal changes in these lipid substituents and long-term effects of climate change.
format Article
id doaj-art-8f279ec9082b4c109ce816cf717b419e
institution Kabale University
issn 2075-1729
language English
publishDate 2024-12-01
publisher MDPI AG
record_format Article
series Life
spelling doaj-art-8f279ec9082b4c109ce816cf717b419e2025-01-24T13:38:33ZengMDPI AGLife2075-17292024-12-011514310.3390/life15010043Copepod Lipidomics: Fatty Acid Substituents of Structural Lipids in <i>Labidocerca aestiva</i>, a Dominant Species in the Food Chain of the Apalachicola Estuary of the Gulf of MexicoPaul L. Wood0Stan C. Kunigelis1Metabolomics Unit, College of Veterinary Medicine, Lincoln Memorial University, 6965 Cumberland Gap Pkwy, Harrogate, TN 37752, USAImaging and Analysis Center, DeBusk College of Osteopathic Medicine, Lincoln Memorial University, 6965 Cumberland Gap Pkwy, Harrogate, TN 37752, USAZooplanktonic copepods represent a major biological mass in the marine food chain that can be affected by climate change. Monitoring the health of this critical biomass is essential for increasing our understanding of the impact of environmental changes on marine environments. Since the lipidomes of marine organisms are known to adapt to alterations in pH, temperature, and availability of metabolic precursors, lipidomics is one technology that can be used for monitoring copepod adaptations. Among the key lipid parameters that can be monitored are the fatty acid substituents of glycerolipids and glycerophospholipids. We utilized high-resolution tandem mass spectrometry (≤2 ppm mass error) to characterize the fatty acid substituents of triacylglycerols, glycerophosphocholines, ceramides, and sphingomyelins of <i>Labidocerca aestiva</i>. This included monitoring for furan fatty acid substituents, a family of fatty acids unique to marine organisms. These data will contribute to establishing a lipid database of the fatty acid substituents of essential structural lipids. The key findings were that polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) were only major substituents in glycerophosphocholines with 36 to 44 carbons. Triacylglycerols, ceramides, and sphingomyelins contained minimal PUFA substituents. Furan fatty acids were limited to mono- and di-acylglycerols. In summary, we have built a baseline database of the fatty acid substituents of key structural lipids in <i>Labidocerca aestiva</i>. With this database, we will next evaluate potential seasonal changes in these lipid substituents and long-term effects of climate change.https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/15/1/43copepodslipidomics<i>Labidocerca aestiva Wheeler</i><i>1900</i>oceanic food chainclimate change
spellingShingle Paul L. Wood
Stan C. Kunigelis
Copepod Lipidomics: Fatty Acid Substituents of Structural Lipids in <i>Labidocerca aestiva</i>, a Dominant Species in the Food Chain of the Apalachicola Estuary of the Gulf of Mexico
Life
copepods
lipidomics
<i>Labidocerca aestiva Wheeler</i>
<i>1900</i>
oceanic food chain
climate change
title Copepod Lipidomics: Fatty Acid Substituents of Structural Lipids in <i>Labidocerca aestiva</i>, a Dominant Species in the Food Chain of the Apalachicola Estuary of the Gulf of Mexico
title_full Copepod Lipidomics: Fatty Acid Substituents of Structural Lipids in <i>Labidocerca aestiva</i>, a Dominant Species in the Food Chain of the Apalachicola Estuary of the Gulf of Mexico
title_fullStr Copepod Lipidomics: Fatty Acid Substituents of Structural Lipids in <i>Labidocerca aestiva</i>, a Dominant Species in the Food Chain of the Apalachicola Estuary of the Gulf of Mexico
title_full_unstemmed Copepod Lipidomics: Fatty Acid Substituents of Structural Lipids in <i>Labidocerca aestiva</i>, a Dominant Species in the Food Chain of the Apalachicola Estuary of the Gulf of Mexico
title_short Copepod Lipidomics: Fatty Acid Substituents of Structural Lipids in <i>Labidocerca aestiva</i>, a Dominant Species in the Food Chain of the Apalachicola Estuary of the Gulf of Mexico
title_sort copepod lipidomics fatty acid substituents of structural lipids in i labidocerca aestiva i a dominant species in the food chain of the apalachicola estuary of the gulf of mexico
topic copepods
lipidomics
<i>Labidocerca aestiva Wheeler</i>
<i>1900</i>
oceanic food chain
climate change
url https://www.mdpi.com/2075-1729/15/1/43
work_keys_str_mv AT paullwood copepodlipidomicsfattyacidsubstituentsofstructurallipidsinilabidocercaaestivaiadominantspeciesinthefoodchainoftheapalachicolaestuaryofthegulfofmexico
AT stanckunigelis copepodlipidomicsfattyacidsubstituentsofstructurallipidsinilabidocercaaestivaiadominantspeciesinthefoodchainoftheapalachicolaestuaryofthegulfofmexico