PLASMALOGENASE ACTIVITIES IN THE BRAINS OF JIMPY AND QUAKING MICE

The activity of plasmalogenase, which hydrolyzes the vinyl ether linkage of the plasmalogen molecule, increased markedly in control mouse brains during the period of most active myelin deposition. Only a slight increase in plasmalogenase activity was found in brains from jimpy mice. At all ages studied, the jimpy mouse brains had less plasmalogenase activity than the littermate control brains and this disparity increased with increasing age. By 25 days of age the jimpy brains contained only 43% of the activity observed in control brains. Adult quaking mouse brains also had significantly less plasmalogenase activity when compared to littermate controls. Thus, the plasmalogenase activities correlate well with the degree of myelination.