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Chemical and Physical Signatures for Microbial Forensics pp 35–52Cite as

Fatty Acids and Lipids

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Part of the book series: Infectious Disease ((ID))

Abstract

Lipids are an integral component of the bacterial membrane and show great structural diversity within the cell. While lipid composition has been an important signature of bacterial phylogeny for many decades, it also has the potential to provide information on the resources and procedures used to culture an organism. Chemical factors like nutritional substrates, temperature, and physical dynamics during growth all can influence the types of lipids and their relative ratios inside the cell and potentially leave diagnostic biosignatures that are unique to a specific production process.

In this chapter, we examine the structural diversity of lipids in the cell and the factors that affect lipid composition during laboratory culturing with particular emphasis on Bacillus organisms. Methods used to extract, separate, and detect fatty acids are reviewed. In addition, the potential utility of lipid profiles in forensic investigations is discussed in the context of specific examples from the literature. Lastly, validation considerations and quality assurance are highlighted as important aspects in the implementation of lipid analysis for microbial forensics.

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The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be implied as necessarily representing the official policies, either expressed or implied, by the US Government. This is publication 08–07 of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Names of commercial manufacturers are provided for identification only, and inclusion does not imply endorsement by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. FBI Laboratory Division, Counterterrorism and Forensic Science Research Unit, 2501 Investigation Parkway, Quantico, VA, 22135, USA

    James M. Robertson Ph.D.

  2. Department of Forensic Sciences, Virginia Commonwealth University, 843079, Grace E. Harris Hall South, Second Floor 1015 Floyd Avenue, Richmond, VA, 23284-3079, USA

    Christopher J. Ehrhardt Ph.D.

  3. FBI Laboratory Division, Chemical and Biological Sciences Unit, Quantico, VA, USA

    Jason Bannan Ph.D.

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  1. James M. Robertson Ph.D.
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  2. Christopher J. Ehrhardt Ph.D.
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  3. Jason Bannan Ph.D.
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Correspondence to Christopher J. Ehrhardt Ph.D. .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Microscopy, Characterisation and Analysis, The University of Western Australia, Crawley, 6009, West Australia, Australia

    John B. Cliff

  2. Chemical and Biological Signature Scienc, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, PO Box 999, MS P7-50, Richland, 99352, Washington, USA

    Helen W. Kreuzer

  3. Department of Forensic Science, Virginia Commonwealth University, 1020 W. Main Street, Richmond, 23284, Virginia, USA

    Christopher J. Ehrhardt

  4. Chemical and Biological Signature Scienc, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, PO Box 999, MS P7-50, Richland, 99352, Washington, USA

    David S. Wunschel

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Robertson, J.M., Ehrhardt, C.J., Bannan, J. (2012). Fatty Acids and Lipids. In: Cliff, J., Kreuzer, H., Ehrhardt, C., Wunschel, D. (eds) Chemical and Physical Signatures for Microbial Forensics. Infectious Disease. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-60327-219-3_3

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