Composition of the ventral gland-pad sebum from the Mongolian gerbil, Meriones unguiculatus.

The chemical composition of the gland-pad sebum of gerbils of both sexes is analysed using gas-liquid chromatographical and mass spectroscopical techniques and compared with the lipids from distal skin areas. Cholesterol esters, with (omega-1)-methyl-substituted fatty acids as acidic constituents, were shown to occur in the gland-pad sebum of both sexes in high concentrations, whereas cholesta-3,5-diene could be detected in the males only.