Long‐chain Bases of Brain and Spinal Cord of Rabbits*

Abstract

IN RECENT years a number of investigators have reported the occurrence in mammalian tissue of long-chain bases other than sphingosine. Dihydrosphingosine was isolated from cerebrosides of beef brain and spinal cord by CARTER, HAINES, LEDYARD, and NORRIS (1947), from cerebrosides of human brain by SCHWARZ, DREISBACH, BARRIONUEVO, KLESCHICK and KOSTYK (1961), and from blood plasma by SWEELEY and MOSCATELLI (1959). The 20-carbon homologue of sphingosine was detected in sphingolipids of horse and beef brain by PROSTENIK and MAJHOER-ORESCANIN (1960), in bovine gangIiosides by KLENK and GIELEN (1961), in bovine mucolipids by STANACEV and CHARGAFF (1962), and in gangliosides but not in cerebrosides or sphingomyelins of several species by SAMBASIVARAO and MCCLUER (1 964). Very recently ROSENBERG and STERN (1966) reported that bases obtained from gangliosides of foetal rat brain were almost exclusively of the CIS type. During the post natal period, C,,-sphingosine increased to such an extent that both types of bases were about equal in the 2-5-weekold rat. They further noticed that the bases of cerebrosides and sphingomyelins conversely remained of the C,, type throughout all stages of brain development. This report describes the isolation of C,,-sphingosine and C,,-dihydrosphingosine from brain and spinal cord of normal and E.A.E. rabbits. MATERIAL A N D METHODSDisease-free female albino rabbits of weighing 2.5-3 kg wt. from Huntingdon Farms, Philadelphia were divided into two groups. One group was used to produce E.A.E. by the method of HOYER, CONDIE and GOOD (1960), the other as controls. Shortly after sacrifice of the paralytic (E.A.E.) animals and controls, brains and spinal cords were excised and treated with chloroform-methanol (2: 1, v/v). The mixtures of extracted lipids were washed according to FOLCH, ASCOLI, LEES, MEATH and LEBARON (1951) and separated on two columns (ROUSER, BAUMAN and KRITCHEVSKY, 1961) for isolation of cerebrosides and sphingomyelins.Isolation of cerebrosides and sphingornyelins. The isolation of the sphingolipids was carried out essentially in the following manner. The washed lipid extract containing 70-100 mg of cerebrosides, 200-300 mg of phospholipids, and other lipids was evaporated to dryness at 35" in a nitrogen stream. The residue dissolved in a small amount of chloroform-methanol (7 : 1, v/v) was applied to a column of 50 g DEAE-cellulose. Approximately 500 ml of that solvent were passed through the column at the rate of 1 ml/min until the eluate emerging from the column showed a positive ninhydrin reaction according to ROUSER et al. (1961). The ninhydrin negative fraction was evaporated to dryness with a stream of nitrogen, re-dissolved in a small amount of chloroform, and applied to a hydrated silicic acid silicate coIumn (ROUSER et al.

Alteration of sphingolipid metabolism as a putative mechanism underlying LPS‐induced BBB disruption

“…; Sonnino & Chigorno, BBA ) and increases with age in neurological diseases, whereas others found it in non‐complex sphingolipids as well but with a 50 : 50 ratio (Rosenberg and Stern ; Schwarz et al . ) for both chain lengths or even a much lower abundance of C20‐bases (Schwarz et al . ).…”

“…) for both chain lengths or even a much lower abundance of C20‐bases (Schwarz et al . ). Concerning non‐neuronal tissues, very scarce information on the abundance of C20‐sphingolipids is available.…”

Imaging Mass Spectrometry for Visualization of Drug and Endogenous Metabolite Distribution: Toward In Situ Pharmacometabolomes

“…8). Previous biochemical studies have revealed that the LCB of the brain ganglioside species has either 18 or 20 carbon atoms (i.e., C18-or C20-sphingosine), and C20-sphingosine (C20-LCB species) is present in significant amounts only in the central nervous system (Jungalwala et al 1979;Sambasivarao and McCluer 1964;Schwarz et al 1967;Sonnino and Chigorno 2000). Its content increases significantly in rodents and humans throughout life (Mansson et al 1978;Palestini et al 1990Palestini et al , 1991.…”

Sphingolipid long chain bases

“…An increase with age of 20-carbon bases has been noted for gangiioside (59) and ceramide (40). A relatively high amount of d18:0 has been found in human peripheral nerve (40) and rabbit spinal cord (54), which confirms an earlier finding from bovine nerve tissue (62). Trihydroxy bases have not been found in nerve tissue, except for a trace amount in peripheral nerve sulfatide and in brain ganglioside (40).…”