Cold acclimation in Pinus sylvestris: Phospholipids in purified plasma membranes from needles of pine

Effects of cold acclimation on needles of Scots pine ( Pinus sylvestris L., Provenance Södra Ydre) were studied at the membrane level. Before and after a period of cold acclimation the plasma membranes were isolated from the needles by a aqueous polymer two‐phase partition technique. Fatty acid composition of total lipids or of individual phospholipids from the plasma membrane showed that the plasma membrane fraction was different from the other microsomal fractions analyzed, especially the 18:2 levels of the individual phospholipids. Furthermore, the cold acclimation period did not result in a decreased saturation level in the plasma membranes. Different steps in cold acclimation reactions at the membrane level are discussed.