Changes were investigated in the phospholipid ratios and the compositions of black matpe (gram) sprouts during germination in the dark. Each phospholipid was isolated and analyzed.
The major lipid fraction at every stage was composed of phospholipids, and the proportions did not change much during germination. Eleven component lipids in the phospholipid fraction were identified:
N-acylphosphatidylethanolamine (APE),
N-acyllysophosphatidylethanolamine (AL-PE), diphosphatidylglycerol (DPG), phosphatidylglycerol (PG), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), phosphatidylcholine (PC), lysophosphatidylethanolamine (LPE), phosphatidylinositol (PI), phosphatidylserine (PS), lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) and phosphatidic acid (PA). At each stage PC, PE and PI were the major component lipids.
Although changes in the rates of PC and PE were slight, PI and APE decreased greatly at the early periods of germination. DPG, PG and ALPE tended to increase after germination. In each phospholipid the major component fatty acids were linolenic, linoleic and palmitic acid. Among others, linoleic acid increased remarkably after germination, whereas linolenic and oleic acid were inclined to decrease. The
N-acyl radical of the APE molecule in germinating black matpe characteristically consisted of unsaturated fatty acids.
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