Lipid class and fatty acid composition of intact peripheral nerve and during wallerian degeneration

Lipid extracts from normal cat, chicken, and beef sciatic nerve were fractionated into their components by combinations of silicic acid, Florisil, DEAE-cellulose, or silicic acid-silicate column chromatography. The constitutent fatty acids of total lipid extracts and of individual lipid classes were qualitatively and quantitatively determined as their methyl esters by gas chromatography. These methods were also applied to lipid extracts from cat sciatic nerve undergoing Wallerian degeneration at 8, 16, 32, and 96 days after section and to chicken sciatic nerve undergoing demyelination due to organophosphate poisoning. All fatty acids were markedly decreased in the total lipids of cat sciatic nerve at 96 days after section and most of these were decreased at 32 days. As early as 8 days after section 16:0, 16:1, 18:2, 20:0, and 20:4 showed decreases, while 18:0, 18:1, 22:1, 22:5, 22:6, and 24:1 did not begin to show decreases until 16 days after section. The decreases in fatty acids were considered to be due to increased catabolism, decreased synthesis, or increased removal of fatty acids from nervous tissue. The fatty acid content of the total lipids of chicken nerve undergoing demyelination resembled that of cat sciatic nerve between 16 and 32 days after section. Myelin lipids, sphingomyelin, cerebrosides, and phosphatidyl ethanolamine (PE) began to decrease as early as 8 days after section in cat sciatic nerve. Phosphatidyl serine (PS) also decreased at this time. Cholesterol, lecithin, and ethanolamine plasmalogen did not begin to decrease until 16 days after section and phosphatidyl inositol (PI) did not decrease until 32 days after section. Triglycerides decreased markedly at 8 days after section gradually returning to normal by 96 days. This was accompanied by a transient increase in free fatty acids and monoglycerides. Cholesterol esters and lysolecithin increased markedly at 8 days after section and were higher than normal levels even at 96 days after section. In chicken sciatic nerve undergoing demyelination after organophosphate poisoning, cerebroside was the only myelin lipid which decreased in amt, while cholesterol esters and diglycerides increased. Sphingomyelin and cerebrosides containing 16:0, 18:0, 18:1, 18:2, 20:0, 22:0, 23:0, 24:0, 24:1 seemed to be most susceptible to degradation or interference in synthesis in degenerating nerve. For the most part, these fatty acids were observed to increase in cholesterol esters, free fatty acids, and, in some instances, triglycerides. The changes in various lipid classes and their constituent fatty acids are discussed in relation to various cellular changes which accompany degeneration.