N-acetylmuramic acid in Mollusca Gastropoda: a histochemical and immunocytochemical study.

The presence of N-acetylmuramic acid in glycoconjugates in various mollusc tissues was investigated by histochemical and immunocytochemical techniques. The tissues studied included foot, mantle, digestive gland, ganglia and haemocytes of Helix aspersa, Planorbarius corneus, Murex brandaris and Trunculariposis trunculus. Sialic acid residues were found to be absent. The possibility that N-acetylmuramic acid replaces sialic acid in acid glycoconjugates of gastropods with similar properties is discussed.