A GANGLIOSIDE FROM STARFISH LEPTYCHASTER ANOMALUS WITH SUBTERMINAL N-ACETYLNEURAMINIC ACID RESIDUE

From starfish Leptychaster anomalus, a ganglioside was isolated, and i ts structure was elucidated by chemical and physicochemical methods, T he ganglioside was found to be a monosialoganglioside with a tetrasacc haride chain in which the N-acetylneuraminic acid residue occupies the subterminal position and is glycosylated with the terminal galactopyr anose residue at the position 4: Galp alpha 1-4Neu5Ac alpha 2-3Galp al pha 1-4Glcp alpha 1-1Cer. The lipid part of the ganglioside contains u nsubstituted fatty acids (mainly palmitic and stearic acids and their monounsaturated derivatives), an alpha-hydroxy-C-18:0 acid, and sphing osines (predominantly C-20 and C-22).