Name: Anne Fischbeck
Diploma / M.Sc degree: Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster, Germany
(October 2004)

PhD Project: Occurrence, Importance and Analysis of Sphingolipids in Food

Abstract of Research Project:

Sphingolipids are the most complex class of lipids. It can be distinguished between simple compounds, like sphingosine-1-phospate, and complex representatives. The latter ones are composed of a sphingoid long-chain base (amino-alcohol) having one amide-linked fatty-acyl chain and a polar head group.



They are present in essentially all eukaryotes as well as a few prokaryotes and therefore ubiquitous constituents of food. However, there have been no systematic studies of sphingolipid-concentration in food, due to difficulties in the analysis.

Sphingolipids are highly bioactive compounds that serve not only as components of biological structures such as membranes and lipoproteins, but also as regulators of cell proliferation, differentiation, cell-cell and cell-matrix interactions, cell migration, membrane trafficking, intra- and extracellular signaling, autophagy and cell death.

Although little is known about the physiological effects of their consumption, several studies have shown that feeding sphingolipids to animals inhibits colon carcinogenesis, reduces serum LDL cholesterol and elevates HDL.

This research project is focused on the occurrence, importance and biological activity of sphingomyelin and sphingosine-1-phosphate as well as the development of appropriate methods for further detailed analysis of food samples.


Publications

A. Fischbeck, M. Krueger, N. Blaas, H.-U. Humpf
Analysis of Sphingomyelin in Meat Based on Hydrophilic Interaction Liquid Chromatography Coupled to Electrospray Ionization-Tandem Mass Spectrometry (HILIC-HPLC-ESI-MS/MS)
J. Agricult. Food Chem. 57(20) (2009), 9469-9474.


Anne Fischbeck
eMail: Anne Fischbeck