Comparative phospholipid analogue distributions of Porphyromonas gingivalis isolated from cats in Australia and the USA

DNA-DNA homology measurements and phospholipid (PL) analogue profiling have shown heterogeneity of Porphyromonas gingivalis. The aim of this study was to determine whether there were differences between cat strains of P. gingivalis from Australia and USA with respect to PL analogue distribution. Lipids were extracted with chloroform-methanol and examined by fast atom bombardment-mass spectrometry (FAB-MS) in negative-ion mode, using published methods. For PL analogues, the major anions included those with mass-to-charge (m/z) = 634, 648, 662, 705, 932, 946 and 960, respectively, corresponding to expected presence of PE (28:0), PE (29:0), PE (30:0), PG (32:1), and three unknown homologues of a glycero-phospholipid with a single nitrogen. Analyses were compared to calculate a matrix of Pearson coefficients of linear correlation from which a dendrogram was produced of strains clustered by single linkage. One cluster was comprised solely of Australian cat-to-cat bite isolates and a second cluster included exclusively USA cat- and dog-to-human bite isolates except for one Australian cat-to-cat bite isolate (VPB 5089). The US cluster included three outliers, one of which was the Australian cat isolate VPB 5089. The human type strain (ATCC 33277) was quite remote from all dog and cat strains. It was shown that P. gingivalis human and non-human animal isolates have distinct PL analogue profiles from each other. Furthermore, the cat strains from the USA and those from Australia showed quantitative differences in polar lipid profiles that correlated largely with country of isolation. © 2001 Elsevier Science B.V.