Di-O-alkylglycerol, mono-O-alkylglycerol and ceramide inositol phosphates of Leishmania mexicana mexicana promastigotes.

Three acidic unsaponifiable lipid fractions were isolated by chromatographic methods from sandfly vector stages (promastigotes) of a protozoan parasite of man, Leishmania mexicana mexicana, cultured in vitro. Fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry, fast atom bombardment collision induced tandem mass spectrometry and metabolic labeling were used to characterize these lipids as di-O-alkylphosphatidyl-inositols, lyso-1-O-alkylphosphatidylinositols and inositol phosphosphingolipids. Molecular species of the dialkyl forms, new to natural product biochemistry, had a 20:0 substituent and either 17:1 or 18:1. The monoalkyl forms had either 17:0 or 18:0. The predominant ceramide had the 16:1 base and the lesser component the 16:0 base. In both, the N-acyl group was 18:0.