Which type of lipid is found in high concentrations in the myelin sheath of nerve cells?
Myelin ultrastructure demands lipid composition favoring extremely stable insulating multilamellar wraps reducing capacitance increasing resistance for saltatory conduction. Oligodendrocyte Schwann cell myelin contains seventy percent lipid eighty percent dry weight enriched sphingolipids galactosylceramide twenty three percent sulfatide four percent sphingomyelin eight percent plus cholesterol twenty eight percent compared plasma membrane choline phospholipids lower PC ten PE fifteen phosphatidylethanolamine. Sphingomyelin amide linked saturated very long chain fatty acids C22 C24 C26 promote
Ref: Quarles et al., Neurochemical myelin membranes sphingomyelin high concentration, in Basic Neurochemistry 2012.
