Characterization of rabbit myocardial phospholipids with 31P nuclear magnetic resonance.

To reduce chemical modifications of phospholipids during extraction and analysis, we developed and evaluated a method for analyzing tissue phospholipids with 31P NMR. Our results indicate: (1) 31P NMR of chloroform/methanol tissue extracts is a convenient and rapid technique for characterizing myocardial phospholipids. (2) Normal rabbit myocardium contains little, if any, lysoglycerophospholipid. (3) Conventional extraction and chromatography of phospholipids may convert choline and ethanolamine plasmalogens to lysoglycerophospholipids by acid-catalyzed hydrolysis.