ISOLATION AND SOME CHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF OLIGODENDROGLIA FROM CALF BRAIN1

Abstract

Abstract— The method of N orton and P oduslo (1970) for isolating brain cells has been adapted for the isolation of oligodendroglia from the white matter of calf brain. The cells were obtained in greater than 90 per cent purity, and in a yield of 11 × 10 6 cells/g of white matter. This number of cells represented a recovery of 11 per cent of the total cells in the tissue and therefore a considerably higher recovery of the original number of oligodendroglia. The average cell contained 5, 2 pg of DNA, 2–0 pg of RNA and 6, 7 pg of lipid. The lipid comprised cholesterol, galactolipid (both cerebroside and sulphatide) and phospholipid in the molar ratio of 1:0, 45:2, 3. Gangliosides were present in a concentration similar to that found in isolated rat neurons, The myelin‐specific enzyme, 2′, 3′‐cyclic nucleotide 3′‐phosphohydrolase, was present at a level nearly equal to that in myelin, and eight‐fold higher than the levels in rat neurons or astrocytes. The isolated oligodendroglia differed considerably from isolated astrocytes in size, morphology and chemical composition.