Plastids with or without galactoglycerolipids

• Galactoglycerolipids are considered signature lipids of green and nongreen plastids.
• Discovery of Plasmodium plastids fueled the search for galactoglycerolipids as targets for malaria treatment.
• Recent data from Plasmodium plastids provided evidence that they did not contain any galactoglycerolipids.
• Questions are raised by the loss of this plastidial marker during evolution.

In structural, functional, and evolutionary terms, galactoglycerolipids are signature lipids of chloroplasts. Their presence in nongreen plastids has been demonstrated in angiosperms and diatoms. Thus, galactoglycerolipids are considered as a landmark of green and nongreen plastids, deriving from either a primary or secondary endosymbiosis. The discovery of a plastid in Plasmodium falciparum, the causative agent of malaria, fueled the search for galactoglycerolipids as possible targets for treatments. However, recent data have provided evidence that the Plasmodium plastid does not contain any galactoglycerolipids. In this opinion article, we discuss questions raised by the loss of galactoglycerolipids during evolution: how have galactoglycerolipids been lost? How does the Plasmodium plastid maintain four membranes without these lipids? What are the main constituents instead of galactoglycerolipids?