Phospholipid class and fatty acid composition of developing spinal cord in normal pigs and in congenital tremor (Myoclonia congenita)

Extracts of spinal cord lipids from normal pigs and littermates affected with myoclonia congenita were examined for lipid and fatty acid composition at 6, 10, 14, 21 and 30 days of age. A marked decrease in total crude lipid and in phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), phosphatidylcholine (PC), phosphatidylserine (PS) and phosphatidylinositol (PI) occurred in spinal cord lipids of affected pigs. Cholesterol esters were absent from spinal and lipid extracts and no qualitative difference in ganglioside patterns were observed between normal and affected pigs at any age. Spinal cord lipid extracts from affected pigs had less oleic acid except at 30 days and more arachidonic, docosapentaenoic and docosahexaenoic acids than normal.