NOVEL FUCOSYLTETRAHEXOSYLCERAMIDE IN PLEROCERCOIDS OF THE PARASITE SPIROMETRA-ERINACEI

A novel glycosphingolipid, fucosyltetrahexosylceramide, has been isola ted from the plerocercoids of a tapeworm, Spirometra erinacei, and cha racterized by permethylation analysis, sequential degradation with exo glycosidases, fast atom bombardment MS and H-1-NMR. The chemical struc ture was determined to be as follows. [GRAPHICS] This glycosphingolipi d was tentatively designated as GalSEGLx, in which the carbohydrate st ructure is characterized by an additional galactose molecule attached to the reducing-end galactose of SEGLx [Gal beta-4(Fuc alpha-3)Glc bet a-3Gal beta Cer], which was previously determined by us [Kawakami, Y., Nakamura, K., Kojima, H., Suzuki, M., Inagaki, F., Suzuki, A., Sonoki , S., Uchida, A., Murata, Y. & Tamai, Y. (1993) J. Biochem. 114, 677-6 83], through a beta 1-6 linkage. The ceramide contained sphinganine an d 4D-hydroxysphinganine in an about equimolar ratio, and a non-hydroxy fatty acid with carbon atoms ranging from 16 to 28, 26:0, 28:0 and 28 :1 being major components. Based on the finding that a novel carbohydr ate structure, Gal beta-4Glc beta-3Gal, was commonly found in glycosph ingolipids from the parasite, S. erinacei, we here propose the terms, spirometo series, for this core structure series, and spirometosides, for glycosphingolipids having this carbohydrate structure.