[Alkoxyl lipids--relics of the organic world: their formation, biotransformation and evolution].

The data on discovery, biosynthesis and distribution of alcoxylipids in different kingdoms of the organic world, their physiologic role and biologic action are given. A conception of possible abiotic synthesis of alcoxylipids on the early stages of the Earth evolution and the ways of their biotransformation is considered. The first biologic membranes are suggested to contain primarily alcoxylipids. During the appearing of photosynthetic mechanism and its improving the alcoxylipids of biomembranes oxidized in plasmalogens and then into diacyl lipids. The possibilities to use alcoxylipids as chemical makers of biomembranes for chemotaxonomy are under discussion.