Brain glycoproteins during foetal development in normal and malnourished rats

Glycoproteins were extracted from foetal brains at 15th and 20th day of gestation. The pregnant rats were fed on either a normal laboratory diet or a low-protein diet. The glycopeptides obtained after pronase digestion were further resolved in two fractions by concanavalin A column chromatography. The glycoproteins amount increases in the last period of gestation, the main increase being due to the fraction that does not bind to concanavalin A. The low-protein diet results in a lower glycoprotein content than in control animals and seems to influence the biosynthesis of glycoproteins.