In this paper we construct a graded Lie algebra on the space of cochains on a $mathbbZ_2$-graded vector space that are skew-symmetric in the odd variables. The Lie bracket is obtained from the classical Gerstenhaber bracket by (partial) skew-symmetrization; the coboundary operator is a skew-symmetrized version of the Hochschild differential. We show that an order-one element $m$ satisfying the zero-square condition $[m,m]=0$ defines an algebraic structure called Lie antialgebra. The cohomology (and deformation) theory of these algebras is then defined. We present two examples of non-trivial cohomology classes which are similar to the celebrated Gelfand-Fuchs and Godbillon-Vey classes.
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