Effects of storage conditions on rat brain ethanolamine glycerophospholipids, cerebrosides, and cholesterol.

The effects of storage on rat brain lipid composition were studied in terms of ethanolamine glycerophospholipid, cerebrosides, and cholesterol. Rat brains were stored at several combinations of temperature and time. Storage conditions were: 2 hr at room temperature, 12 hr of refrigeration, and a sequence of both of these conditions. Two-dimensional thin layer chromatography followed by colorimetric analyses of eluted lipids were used to determine molar ratios of phosphatidylethanolamine, ethanolamine plasmalogen, lysophosphatidylethanolamine, and cerebrosides. Cholesterol was also determined. These studies revealed small but significant increases in lysophosphatidylethanolamine in all three cases. A slight increase was also noted in the apparent molar proportion of cholesterol.