Abstract
Alterations in small intestinal MVM lipid composition may have profound effects on biophysical properties, such as fluidity and hydrophobicity. We prepared MVM using MgCl2 precipitation of small intestine from rats ranging in age from late fetal life to adulthood. In addition, the effects of glucocorticoid administration (dexamethasone at 0.2 rag/Kg to pregnant mothers and hydrocortisone 50 mg/Kg to postnatal rats) were analyzed. Phospholipids were measured by 2-dimensional thin layer chromatography and cholesterol by coloriraetry.
Cholesterol/protein ratio did not change with maturation or with glucocorticoid. These results indicate: 1) a decrease in phospholipid to protein ratio with maturation, which is not altered by exogenous glucocorticoids, 2) cholesterol to phospholipid ratios increase with maturation, which is modulated by glucocorticoids in weanling and adult rats. Since the ratio of cholesterol to phospholipid is known to alter membrane molecular packing, these maturational changes may be related to the ontogeny of membrane fluidity, hydrophobicity and permeability.
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Neu, J., Sankar, M. CHOLESTEROL AND PHOSPHOLIPIDS IN RAT MICROVILLUS MEMBRANE (MVM) CHANGE WITH MATURATION AND WITH GLUCO-CORTICOID ADMINISTRATION. Pediatr Res 21 (Suppl 4), 273 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198704010-00637
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198704010-00637
