A direct comparison between fatty acid analysis and intact phospholipid profiling for microbial identification

Two chemical methods for characterization of micro organisms were compared: phospholipid ester-linked fatty acid (PLFA) analysis by gas chromatography /mass spectrometry, and intact phospholipid profiling (IPP) using liquid ch romatography/electrospray ionization/mass spectrometry. Both methods were t ested on five reference pseudomonad strains: Pseudomonas putida mt-2, Pseud omonas putida F1, Burkholderia cepacia G4, Burkholderia pickettii PKO1, and Pseudomonas mendocina KR1. PLFA detected eight major fatty acids in these pseudomonads, ranging in chain length from C-14 to C-19. IPP detected 16 ph ospholipids in three different classes: phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidyle thanolamine and phosphatidyl-dimethylethanolamine. Factor analysis of the d ata showed that IPP is superior to the PLFA technique in microbial differen tiation and identification. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reser ved.