N-Glycinated lyso-sulfatide

N-Glycinated lyso-sulfatide is an analogue of the important biomolecule lyso-sulfatide. It is ideal for use as an internal standard in the extraction and mass spectrometry analysis of lyso-sulfatide from natural samples.1 The free amine group gives this product very similar physical characteristics to the natural glycolipid while the glycine adds an additional 57 units to the molecule making it easy to detect by mass spectroscopy. Sulfatide is a type of sulfolipid that is found primarily in the central nervous system and is a myelin-specific sphingolipid. A deficiency of sulfatide in white and gray matter has been associated with Alzheimer’s disease and other types of dementia. Apoliprotein E plays an important regulating role in the metabolism of sulfatides.2 A production of anti-sulfatide antibodies in the cerebrospinal fluid, leading to a deficiency in sulfatides, may be a cause of degeneration of the myelin sheath, leading to multiple sclerosis.3 Metachromatic leukodystrophy is an inherited disorder characterized by a deficiency of the lysosomal enzyme arylsulfatase A and the subsequent accumulation of sulfatide in neural and visceral tissues.4 An immunomodulatory role for sulfatides has been suggested in the pathogenesis of tuberculosis.