Isolation of characteristic glycolipids possibly included in spherical droplets around M. leprae.

The main purpose of this work was to isolate the components in acetone soluble lipids of lepromas of the nine-banded armadillo by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and then to examine the mass spectrometric characteristics of the two peaks (molecular weights 2000 and 1600) found by HPLC. The armadillo had been inoculated with Mycobacterium leprae isolated from a mangabey monkey with naturally acquired leprosy. According to the results of HPLC, gas liquid chromatographic and mass spectral analyses, the GPC peak I lipid at 2000 D was identified as phenolic glycolipid and the GPC peak II lipid at 1600 D, as phthiocerol dimycocerosate. It was thought that the GPC peak I lipid and the GPC peak II lipid were included in the spherical droplets (peribacillary substance) around M. leprae. It was concluded that the microorganisms causing leprosy-like changes in the mangabey monkey were either M. leprae or a very closely related bacillus.