Characterization of porcine omental lipids.

Porcine omental lipid extracts were fractionated and the major lipid components characterized. Approximately 97% of the chloroform/methanol extract consisted of triglycerides containing primarily 16:0, 18:0, 18:1, and 18:2 fatty acids. Small quantities of free fatty acids, cholesterol, di- and monoglycerides were also detected. The phospholipid fraction, obtained by solvent partition and Unisil column chromatography and characterized by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and HPLC-mass spectrometry, was found to consist primarily of phosphatidylcholine, sphingomyelin, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylserine, and phosphatidylinositol. The neutral glycolipids, isolated by solvent partition and Unisil column chromatography and identified by HPTLC and HPLC, were found to consist primarily of di-, tri- and tetraosylceramides. The complex glycolipid fraction, obtained from Folch upper phase solvent partition and characterized by HPTLC and immunoblotting, was found to consist primarily of ganglio-, globo-, and neolacto- neutral glycolipids and ganglio-, globo-, neolacto- and fucosylated gangliosides.