Metabolism of nucleic acids and lipids in brain and in peripheral nerve during experimental demyelination

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Abstract
The nucleic acids in slices of rat brain and fragments of cat peripheral nerve, respiring in a suitably buffered medium containing glucose, are labeled from radioactive precursors, such as inorganic p32 and formate-Cl1. Ribonucleic acid is labeled more rapidly than desoxyribonucleic acid. A very slight labeling of cholesterol from acetate-1-C14 occurs in slices of rat brain and fragments of cat sciatic nerve. Data from experiments on the labeling of glycerophosphatides from a variety of radioactive precursors indicate that in brain and peripheral nerve tissue, the phosphatides are formed in situ from small molecules. The pathway for the biosynthesis of lecithin in nervous system tissue is similar to that described for chicken liver. When the population of Schwann cells in a peripheral nerve is increased by sectioning the nerve, the labeling of the phosphatides and cholesterol is increased. It is suggested that this increase represents an increase in the potentiality of the nerve for remyelination.