Glycolipids of the bovine pineal organ and retina.

Neutral and acidic glycolipids from the bovine pineal organ and neutral glycolipids from the bovine retina were characterized. The chemical structures of the isolated glycolipids were determined by means of carbohydrate analysis, methylation analysis, enzyme treatment, fatty acid analysis, long chain base analysis, mass spectrometry, NMR spectroscopy, and IR spectroscopy. GM3, GD3, and GT1 were the major bovine pineal organ gangliosides, GD3 accounting for 75% of the total gangliosides. Galactosylceramide, glucosylceramide, and lactosylceramide were found in both the bovine pineal organ and retina. Sulfatide was also present in both tissues. It had already been reported that the major bovine retina ganglioside was GD3 (Handa, S. & Burton, R.M. (1969) Lipids 4, 205-208). The glycolipid patterns of the two tissues were very similar to each other and quite different from those of other tissues.