Abstract
Extract: Neutral glycosphingolipids and sulfatides, as well as sphingomyelin, were studied in the brain of 34 newborn infants with gestational ages ranging from 22 to 45 weeks. The analyses were carried out in homogenates of whole cerebrum. The infants were considered to be free of any important cause of cerebral damage. Neutral glycosphingolipids and sulfatides were expressed by their content in hexose. Sphingomyelin was separated from other lipids by column chromatography and alkaline hydrolysis, and was expressed by its phosphorus content. The figures were plotted versus gestational ages. The index, brain weight/body weight per cent, was plotted against gestational ages in order to compare the increase of brain weight with the deposition of lipids.
The 3rd trimester of human gestation is a period during which the increase in brain weight and developmental processes proceed at a very high velocity. The study of a wide series of human brains obtained under the same conditions from newborn infants with a narrow range of gestational ages makes it possible to follow the biochemical changes from an early stage of maturation. This allows minimal variations to be detected in a period of maximal sensitivity.
Speculation: Sphingomyelin and neutral glycosphingolipids and sulfatides were chosen for the purpose of tracing the way in which the developmental changes proceed. The chronologic relation between biochemical changes and brain weight increase was considered also.
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Conde, C., Martinez, M. & Ballabriga, A. Some Chemical Aspects of Human Brain Development. I. Neutral Glycosphingolipids, Sulfatides, and Sphingomyelin. Pediatr Res 8, 89–92 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197402000-00004
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-197402000-00004
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