The phospholipids of mineralized tissues. I. Mammalian compact bone.

Abstract

The neutral phospholipids sphingomyelin, lecithin and phosphatidylethanolamine were the principal phosphatides of compact bovine bone. Together, these lipids accounted for over 90% of the phospholipids removed from bone, prior to demineralization, and for over 60% of the total phosphatides extracted from this tissue. Following demineralization, neutral lipid solvents removed a further quantity of neutral, and a considerable number of acidic, phospholipids from the bone matrix. A final treatment of the bone matrix with an acidified solvent mixture removed a small number of acidic, as well as neutral, phosphatides from the tissue. To account for the necessity of the demineralization step in the lipid extraction procedure, it was suggested that lipids of the post-demineralized extract were bound to the mineral phase of bone. To exclude the possibility that this extract was merely due to the apatite crystallites acting as a solvent diffusion barrier, the effect of the lipid extraction of bone of different particle size was examined. However, it was found that the composition of the lipid extracts was not related to the particle area; hence, it was inferred that the bone mineral was not obstructing the passage of the lipid extractants in the tissue.