A COMPARATIVE-STUDY OF LIPID COMPOSITIONS OF CRYPTOSPORIDIUM-PARVUM (APICOMPLEXA) AND MADIN-DARBY BOVINE KIDNEY-CELLS

Membrane lipid compositions of Cryptosporidium parvum and Madin-Darby bovine kidney cells, an epithelial-like cell line commonly used to stu dy coccidia in vitro, were analyzed using both thin-layer chromatograp hy and gas-liquid chromatography. Phosphatidylcholine was the predomin ant lipid in both C. parvum and Madin-Darby bovine kidney cells, compr ising 65% and 41% of the total phospholipids, respectively. Phospholip ids of C. parvum contained twice the level of 16:0 and twenty-fold mor e 18:2 than the Madin-Darby bovine kidney cell line. We suggest that t he parasite may be capable of sequestering specific complex membrane l ipids at concentrations greater than those in the host cells. This stu dy constitutes the first report of the lipid composition of C. parvum.