Bovine and porcine pulps were analyzed for the relative proportions of different constitutions of the connective tissue. Both pulps were similar in their composition. Collagen comprised 12.7 per cent of porcine and 16.8 per cent of bovine pulp. Total carbohydrate accounted for 7.8 per cent of porcine and 5.9 per cent of bovine pulp. Relatively high concentrations of hexo-samine, sialic acid, neutral sugars and fucose were found. Of the total hexosamine, 1/5 was recovered in the acid mucopolysaccharides. This meant that most of the hexosamine was bound to glycoproteins. Electrophoretically, two types of acid mucopolysaccharides were identified, hyaluronate and chondroitin sulphate. A third, as yet unidentified, component was also present. It thus appears that the pulp contains very small amounts of collagen and relatively high concentrations of glycoproteins and acid mucopolysaccharides. These findings are consistent with histologic observations on the pulp and would explain its high water and calcium content.
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