Occurrence of galactosylceramide in pig epidermal cells.

Monoglycosylceramides were isolated from pig epidermal cells which had been prepared free from dermal elements. The most polar glycolipid among the five isolated monoglycosylceramides was galactosylceramide. The galactosylceramide was composed of alpha-hydroxypalmitic acid and 16- and 18-carbon chain sphingenine, being quite different from epidermal glucosylceramides. This is the first report demonstrating the occurrence of galactosylceramide in mammalian epidermal cells.