What is the saturated fatty acid concentration of amoebas living in colder climes?
The saturated fatty acid concentration of amoebas in colder environments should be higher than amoebas found in warmer ecosystems. Approximately 14% of the mass of lipophosphonoglycan of the amoeba plasma membrane consists of three classes of long chain fatty acids: (a) normal, saturated and unsaturated and branched, saturated fatty acids C-16 to C-28, 4.5 % ; (b) normal and branched, saturated 2-hydroxy fatty acids C-22 to C-28, 8.4 % ; and (c) a group tentatively identified as normal and branched, saturated 2-hydroxy-3-methyl fatty acids, 0.9%.
