@article{mbs:/content/journal/micro/10.1099/mic.0.000169, author = "Ahrendt, Tilman and Dauth, Christina and Bode, Helge B.", title = "An iso-15 : 0 O-alkylglycerol moiety is the key structure of the E-signal in Myxococcus xanthus", journal= "Microbiology", year = "2016", volume = "162", number = "1", pages = "138-144", doi = "https://doi.org/10.1099/mic.0.000169", url = "https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/micro/10.1099/mic.0.000169", publisher = "Microbiology Society", issn = "1465-2080", type = "Journal Article", abstract = "The E-signal is one of five intercellular signals (named A- to E-signal) guiding fruiting body development in Myxococcus xanthus, and it has been shown to be a combination of the branched-chain fatty acid (FA) iso-15 : 0 and the diacylmonoalkyl ether lipid TG1. Developmental mutants HB015 (Δbkd MXAN_4265::kan) and elbD (MXAN_1528::kan) are blocked at different stages of fruiting body and spore formation as they cannot form the required iso-FA or the actual ether lipid, respectively. In order to define the structural basis of the E-signal, different mono- and triglycerides containing ether or ester bonds were synthesized and used for complementation of these mutants. Here, the monoalkylglyceride dl-1-O-(13-methyltetradecyl)glycerol exhibited comparably high levels of complementation in both mutants, restoring fruiting body and spore formation, identifying iso-15 : 0 O-alkylglycerol, part of the natural lipid TG1, as the ‘signalophore’ of E-signalling.", }