The dispersion of cerebral lipids in aqueous media by ultrasonic irradiation

Abstract

• 1.

  1. Optcally-clear sols of ox-brain cerebral lipids prepared by ultrasonic irradiation (16–24 kcycles/sec) have been examined by physicochemical methods.

• 2.

  2. The myelinic figures in the lecithin sols were broken down to disc-shaped micelles with a micellar weight of about 2·10⁶.

• 3.

  3. Sedimentation of dispersions of phosphatidylethanolamine and -serine and sphingomyelin indicated micellar weights similar to that for lecithin.

• 4.

  4. The phospholipid sols, with the exception of phosphatidylethanolamine, were stable over several days and were not flocculated by dilute salt solutions.

• 5.

  5. Sulphatides, unlike cerebrosides, were readily dispersed, due to the acidic groups on the molecules.

• 6.

  6. No evidence for chemical changes resulting from ultrasonic irradiation was obtained from preliminary analyses.