Microbial plasma membrane lipids

Microbial plasma membrane lipids are essential structural and functional components of the cell envelope in bacteria and fungi, providing a selective permeability barrier and a scaffold for membrane-bound proteins (Epand et al., 2016, PMID: 27532147). In bacteria, these lipids often include phosphatidylglycerol and cardiolipin, which are negatively charged and serve as the primary targets for cationic antimicrobial peptides and drugs like daptomycin, which causes rapid membrane depolarization (Silverman et al., 2003, PMID: 12939442). In fungi, ergosterol is a unique lipid component that maintains membrane integrity and is the target for polyene antifungals such as amphotericin B, which forms lethal pores in the membrane (Baginski & Czub, 2009, PMID: 19149605). Additionally, lipid-linked precursors like Lipid II are critical for cell wall synthesis and are targeted by glycopeptide derivatives to halt peptidoglycan assembly (Schneider & Sahl, 2010, PMID: 20440274). Because these lipids are fundamental to microbial survival and differ significantly from human membrane lipids, they represent a vital target for treating multi-drug resistant infections. The physical disruption of the membrane is a robust mechanism of action that is generally difficult for microbes to overcome through simple genetic mutations.

Other names

Bacterial membrane lipidsFungal membrane lipidsMicrobial cell membrane lipidsProkaryotic membrane lipidsPhospholipid bilayer (microbial)

Direct binding to membrane lipids leading to membrane depolarization, pore formation, and leakage of intracellular contents; or binding to lipid precursors to inhibit cell wall biosynthesis.