HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS		QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced] Author: Keyword(s): Year:  Vol:  Page:

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by O'Brien, J. S. Articles by Sampson, E. L. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by O'Brien, J. S. Articles by Sampson, E. L. Social Bookmarking                      What's this?

Journal of Lipid Research, Vol. 6, 545-551, October 1965
Copyright © 1965 by Lipid Research, Inc.

Fatty acid and fatty aldehyde composition of the major brain lipids in normal human gray matter, white matter, and myelin

John S. O'Brien and E. Lois Sampson

Division of Chemical Pathology, Departments of Pathology and Medicine, University of Southern California School of Medicine, Los Angeles, California

Gray matter, white matter, and myelin were isolated from the frontal lobes of the brains of humans aged 10 months, 6 yr, 9 yr, and 55 yr. The major lipids, including ethanolamine glycerophosphatides (EGP), serine glycerophosphatides (SGP), choline glycerophosphatides (CGP), sphingomyelin, cerebroside, cerebroside sulfate, and ceramide were isolated by column chromatography and their fatty acid and fatty aldehyde compositions were determined by gas-liquid chromatography.

EGP and SGP from myelin had a fatty aldehyde composition which differed from that of EGP and SGP from gray matter; octadecenaldehydes were present in much higher proportions in these lipids from myelin than in those from gray matter. EGP and SGP also contained high proportions of 20- and 22-carbon polyunsaturated fatty acids, whereas CGP contained small proportions of these acids. Each glycerophosphatide from gray matter contained approximately 3- to 6-fold higher proportions of polyunsaturated fattyacids than did the same glycerophosphatide from myelin. Sphingomyelin, cerebroside, cerebroside sulfate, and ceramide also differed in their fatty acid compositions depending upon their tissue source; each sphingolipid from myelin in the younger subjects contained 5- to 9-fold higher proportions of long-chain fatty acids (C₁₉-C₂₆) than did the same sphingolipid from gray matter.

The lipids from myelin in the baby (10 months) were very similar to those from myelin in the adult, both with respect to their content of polyunsaturated fatty acids and to their content of long-chain fatty acids. These findings suggest that myelin in the baby is "chemically mature" in its lipid composition at an early age.

Supplementary key words brain • lipid fractions • fatty acids • fatty aldehydes • gray matter • white matter • myelin • man • age

Submitted on April 1, 1965
Accepted on June 25, 1965

CiteULike    Complore    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    What's this?

This article has been cited by other articles:

				A. S. Brown and E. S. Susser Prenatal Nutritional Deficiency and Risk of Adult Schizophrenia Schizophr Bull, November 1, 2008; 34(6): 1054 - 1063. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				R. Friesen and S. M. Innis Maternal dietary fat alters amniotic fluid and fetal intestinal membrane essential n-6 and n-3 fatty acids in the rat Am J Physiol Gastrointest Liver Physiol, March 1, 2006; 290(3): G505 - G510. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				V. Wijendran, P. Lawrence, G.-Y. Diau, G. Boehm, P. W. Nathanielsz, and J. T. Brenna Significant utilization of dietary arachidonic acid is for brain adrenic acid in baboon neonates J. Lipid Res., May 1, 2002; 43(5): 762 - 767. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				E. D. Korn Structure of Biological Membranes Science, September 23, 1966; 153(3743): 1491 - 1498. [Abstract] [PDF]

				G. K. Balendiran, F. Schnutgen, G. Scapin, T. Borchers, N. Xhong, K. Lim, R. Godbout, F. Spener, and J. C. Sacchettini Crystal Structure and Thermodynamic Analysis of Human Brain Fatty Acid-binding Protein J. Biol. Chem., August 25, 2000; 275(35): 27045 - 27054. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]