Fatty acid composition of ethanolamine phosphoglycerides in different areas of the gerbil brain after chronic exposure to trichloroethylene.

Exposure of Mongolian gerbils to trichloroethylene (TCE) (320 ppm) in an inhalation chamber continuously for 3 mo resulted in an altered fatty acid pattern of phospholipid in discrete areas of the brain. Lipids were extracted from four brain regions: the cerebral cortex, the hippocampus, the cerebellar vermis posterior, and the brain stem. No changes induced by TCE were found in lipid class distribution among the different regions examined. Whole brain weights and weights of the dissected pieces were also unchanged. In ethanolamine phosphoglycerides from the cerebral cortex and the hippocampus, a decrease was found among long-chain fatty acids derived from linolenic acid with a corresponding increase of the linoleic acid family. The cerebellar vermis and the brain stem were less affected. Since areas rich in gray matter were affected more than those with a high proportion of white matter, it seems reasonable to assume that the fatty acid alterations of ethanolamine phosphoglycerides occur mainly in the gray matter. Furthermore, we suggest that the alterations can be a compensatory mechanism for the membrane fluidizing properties of TCE.