Cerebrosides of human aorta: isolation, identification of the hexose, and fatty acid distribution.

Cerebrosides have been isolated from adult human aortic tissue. Each aorta was divided into portions classified as normal, fatty streaks, fibrous plaques, or complicated lesions. The cerebrosides were isolated by Florisil column chromatography, mild alkaline methanolysis, a second Florisil column, and preparative thin-layer chromatography. The concentration of cerebrosides was higher in fatty streaks than in the more advanced plaques; apparently normal tissue gave the same cerebroside content as plaques found in the same aorta. The quantities of cerebrosides ranged from 0.01 to 0.73% of the total lipid. Of the 16 cerebroside samples isolated, 10 contained glucosyl ceramide, 1 contained galactosyl ceramide, and 5 were not analyzed for specific hexose. The fatty acid distribution was determined for 11 of the samples; it was similar to that of spleen cerebrosides. We suggest that aortic cerebrosides originate in the plasma. "Normal tissue" cerebrosides contained less unsaturated fatty acid than cerebrosides from a diseased area of the same aorta. Preparative thin-layer chromatography, the last step of cerebroside isolation, always separated at least two unidentified substances. One of these substances yielded both glucose and galactose on acid hydrolysis. Their removal from the cerebrosides accounts for the lower values for cerebroside compared to other authors' determinations.