Characterization of phospholipid composition of pig plasma and erythrocyte membranes

Phospholipids (PL) are among the main lipid components of cellular membranes and plasma lipoproteins. Plasma phospholipids play a role in metabolic transport systems where even slight changes in cellular lipid composition may cause modifications in membrane permeability and fluidity. Until now, extensive analysis of phospholipids has only been carried out in human plasma and erythrocytes (Suchocka et al. 2003), where the composition and content of phospholipids (PL) are altered both under physiological (Sumikawa et al. 1993) and pathological conditions (Kaczmarek et al. 2002; Süllentrop et al. 2002). Interspecies differences in the lipid composition of erythrocyte membranes (Nelson 1967) among mammals have been detected by time-consuming multi-step methods, which are not always accurate, because phospholipid recoveries are influenced by the conditions of extraction (Eder et al. 1993). By means of 31 P NMR analysis using detergents it has been possible, using a one single step method, to indicate differences in plasma and erythrocyte membrane phospholipids between mammals and marsupials (Nouri-Sorkhabi et al. 1996), changes in the composition and quantitative distribution of pig erythrocyte membrane phospholipids, as compared with other species, and thesignificantly higher levels of plasma phosphatidylcholine (PC) and sphingomyelin (SPH) in the chicken (Bruschetta et al. 2004). In order to give useful reports on a species that is a well-known animal model, a study has been carried out on pig plasma and erythrocyte membrane phospholipids. The results are compared with those measured, using the same method, in the horse (Nouri-Sorkhabi et al., 1996; Bruschetta et al. 2004) and, only concerning plasma phospholipids, in humans (Süllentrop et al. 2002).