Long chain polyenoic acid levels in viably sorted, highly enriched mouse testis cells.

Twenty- and 22-carbon fatty acids of the linoleic (n-6) and linolenic (n-3) acid families were measured in murine spermatogonia and preleptotene spermatocytes (early), pachytene primary spermatocytes (1 degree), round spermatids (RS), condensing spermatids (CS) and Leydig cells enriched by staput velocity sedimentation at 1 G, followed by viable microflow sorting on the basis of light scatter and DNA content. 22:5(n-6) increased progressively from 2 to 20% of total fatty acid in the progression of germinal cell differentiation, early leads to 1 degree leads to RS leads to CS, but decreased in mature sperm. The precursor 20:4(n-6) showed a roughly reciprocal relationship. 22:6(n-3) showed no significant correlation with cell type. 22:5(n-6) was found highest in triglycerides of later differentiation stages whereas 20:4(n-6) and 22:6(n-3) were found primarily in phospholipid in all cell fractions.