Synthesis, biological activity evaluation and mechanism analysis of new ganglioside GM3 derivatives as potential agents for nervous functional recovery.

Neuronal regenerative ability is vital for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases and neuronal injuries. Recent studies have revealed that Ganglioside GM3 and its derivatives may possess potential neuroprotective and neurite growth-promoting activities. Herein, six GM3 derivatives were synthesized and evaluated their potential neuroprotective effects and neurite outgrowth-promoting activities on a cellular model of Parkinson's disease and primary nerve cells. Amongst these derivatives, derivatives N-14 and 2C-12 demonstrated neuroprotective effects in the MPP + model in SH-SY5Y cells. 2C-12 combined with NGF (nerve growth factor) induced effecially neurite growth in primary nerve cells. Further action mechanism revealed that derivative 2C-12 exerts neuroprotective effects by regulating the Wnt signaling pathway, specifically involving the Wnt7b gene. Overall, this study establishes a foundation for further exploration and development of GM3 derivatives with neurotherapeutic potential.

Enhanced Anti-Atherosclerotic Efficacy of pH-Responsively Releasable Ganglioside GM3 Delivered by Reconstituted High-Density Lipoprotein.

Recently, the atheroprotective role of endogenous GM3 and an atherogenesis-inhibiting effect of exogenous GM3 suggested a possibility of exogenous GM3 being recruited as an anti-atherosclerotic drug. This study seeks to endow exogenous GM3 with atherosclerotic targetability via reconstituted high-density lipoprotein (rHDL), an atherosclerotic targeting drug nanocarrier. Unloaded rHDL, rHDL loaded with exogenous GM3 at a low concentration (GM3L-rHDL), and rHDL carrying GM3 at a relatively high concentration (GM3H-rHDL) were prepared and characterized. The inhibitory effect of GM3-rHDL on lipid deposition in macrophages was confirmed, and GM3-rHDL did not affect the survival of red blood cells. In vivo experiments using ApoE-/- mice fed a high fat diet further confirmed the anti-atherosclerotic efficacy of exogenous GM3 and demonstrated that GM3 packed in HDL nanoparticles (GM3-rHDL) has an enhanced anti-atherosclerotic efficacy and a reduced effective dose of GM3. Then, the macrophage- and atherosclerotic plaque-targeting abilities of GM3-rHD, most likely via the interaction of ApoA-I on GM3-rHDL with its receptors (e.g., SR-B1) on cells, were certified via a microsphere-based method and an aortic fragment-based method, respectively. Moreover, we found that solution acidification enhanced GM3 release from GM3-rHDL nanoparticles, implying the pH-responsive GM3 release when GM3-rHDL enters the acidic atherosclerotic plaques from the neutral blood. The rHDL-mediated atherosclerotic targetability and pH-responsive GM3 release of GM3-rHDL enhanced the anti-atherosclerotic efficacy of exogenous GM3. The development of the GM3-rHDL nanoparticle may help with the application of exogenous GM3 as a clinical drug. Moreover, the data imply that the GM3-rHDL nanoparticle has the potential of being recruited as a drug nanocarrier with atherosclerotic targetability and enhanced anti-atherosclerotic efficacy.

Synthesis and Evaluation of Liposomal Anti-GM3 Cancer Vaccine Candidates Covalently and Noncovalently Adjuvanted by αGalCer.

GM3, a typical tumor-associated carbohydrate antigen, is considered as an important target for cancer vaccine development, but its low immunogenicity limits its application. αGalCer, an iNKT cell agonist, has been employed as an adjuvant via a unique immune mode. Herein, we prepared and investigated two types of antitumor vaccine candidates: (a) self-adjuvanting vaccine GM3-αGalCer by conjugating GM3 with αGalCer and (b) noncovalent vaccine GM3-lipid/αGalCer, in which GM3 is linked with lipid anchor and coassembled with αGalCer. This demonstrated that ßGalCer is an exceptionally optimized lipid anchor, which enables the noncovalent vaccine candidate GM3-ßGalCer/αGalCer to evoke a comparable antibody level to GM3-αGalCer. However, the antibodies induced by GM3-αGalCer are better at recognition B16F10 cancer cells and more effectively activate the complement system. Our study highlights the importance of vaccine constructs utilizing covalent or noncovalent assembly between αGalCer with carbohydrate antigens and choosing an appropriate lipid anchor for use in noncovalent vaccine formulation.

Gangliosides and CD82 inhibit the motility of colon cancer by downregulating the phosphorylation of EGFR at different tyrosine sites and signaling pathways.

Previous studies have shown that (GM3), a ganglioside, suppresses hepatoma cell motility and migration by inhibiting phosphorylation of EGFR and the activity of the PI3K/AKT signaling pathway. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to investigate whether the combined treatment of CD82 with gangliosides can exert a synergistic inhibitory effect on cell motility and migration. Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling was studied for its role in the mechanism through which CD82 and gangliosides synergistically inhibit the motility and migration of SW620 human colon adenocarcinoma cells. GM3 and/or GM2 treatment, and/or overexpression of CD82 was performed in SW620 cells. High-performance thin layer chromatography, reverse transcription-quantitative PCR, western blotting and flow cytometry assays were used to confirm the content changes of GM2, GM3 and CD82. In addition, the phosphorylation of EGFR, MAPK and Akt were evaluated by western blot analysis. SW620 cell motility was investigated using wound healing analysis and chemotaxis migration assay. The combination of GM3 and GM2 with CD82 was found to markedly suppress EGF-stimulated SW620 cell motility compared with the individual factors or combination of GM2 or GM3 with CD82 by inhibiting the phosphorylation of EGFR. The results suggested that CD82 in combination with either GM2 or GM3 can exert a synergistic inhibitory effect on cell motility and migration; however, the synergistic mechanisms elicited by GM2 or GM3 with CD82 differ.

Ganglioside GM3 Up-Regulate Chondrogenic Differentiation by Transform Growth Factor Receptors.

Mesenchymal stem cells, also known as multipotent stromal progenitor cells, can differentiate into cells of mesodermal lineage. Gangliosides are sialic acid-conjugated glycosphingolipids that are believed to regulate cell differentiation and several signaling molecules. These molecules are localized in glycosphingolipid-enriched microdomains on the cell surface and are regulated by glycosphingolipid composition. Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-ß) signaling plays a critical role in chondrogenic differentiation. However, the role of gangliosides in chondrogenesis is not understood. In this study, the relationship between the ganglioside GM3 and TGF-ß activation, during chondrogenic differentiation, was investigated using an aggregate culture of human synovial membrane-derived mesenchymal stem cells. We showed that the gangliosides GM3 and GD3 were expressed after the chondrogenic differentiation of hSMSC aggregates. To test whether GM3 affected the chondrogenic differentiation of hSMSC aggregates, we used GM3 treatment during chondrogenic differentiation. The results showed that the group treated with 5 µM GM3 had higher expression of chondrogenic specific markers, increased toluidine blue, and safranin O staining, and increased accumulation of glycosaminoglycans compared with the untreated group. Furthermore, GM3 treatment enhanced TGF-ß signaling via SMAD 2/3 during the chondrogenic differentiation of hSMSC aggregates. Taken together, our results suggested that GM3 may be useful in developing therapeutic agents for cell-based articular cartilage regeneration in articular cartilage disease.

Effects of Gangliosides on Spermatozoa, Oocytes, and Preimplantation Embryos.

Gangliosides are sialic acid-containing glycosphingolipids, which are the most abundant family of glycolipids in eukaryotes. Gangliosides have been suggested to be important lipid molecules required for the control of cellular procedures, such as cell differentiation, proliferation, and signaling. GD1a is expressed in interstitial cells during ovarian maturation in mice and exogenous GD1a is important to oocyte maturation, monospermic fertilization, and embryonic development. In this context, GM1 is known to influence signaling pathways in cells and is important in sperm-oocyte interactions and sperm maturation processes, such as capacitation. GM3 is expressed in the vertebrate oocyte cytoplasm, and exogenously added GM3 induces apoptosis and DNA injury during in vitro oocyte maturation and embryogenesis. As a consequence of this, ganglioside GT1b and GM1 decrease DNA fragmentation and act as H2O2 inhibitors on germ cells and preimplantation embryos. This review describes the functional roles of gangliosides in spermatozoa, oocytes, and early embryonic development.

Exogenous GM3 ganglioside inhibits atherosclerosis via multiple steps: A potential atheroprotective drug.

Atherosclerosis is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. A significant increase in ganglioside GM3 content generally happens in atherosclerotic plaques causing a GM3-enriched microenvironment. It remains unclear whether the GM3-enriched microenvironment influences atherogenesis. This study sought to answer the question by investigating exogenous GM3 effects on multiple steps involved in atherogenesis. First, the physicochemical properties of native low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and LDL enriched with exogenous GM3 (GM3-LDL) were characterized by dynamic laser scattering, atomic force microscopy, and agarose gel electrophoresis. Then, electrophoretic mobility, conjugated diene and malondialdehyde production, and amino group blockage of GM3-LDL/LDL were measured to determine LDL oxidation degrees and cellular recognition/internalization of GM3-LDL/GM3-oxLDL were detected via confocal microscopy and flow cytometry. Subsequently, influences of exogenous GM3 addition on the monocyte-adhering ability of endothelial cells and on lipid deposition in macrophages were investigated. Finally, exogenous GM3 effect on atherogenesis was evaluated using apoE-/- mice fed a high-fat diet. We found that exogenous GM3 addition increased the size, charge, and stability of LDL particles, reduced LDL susceptibility to oxidation and its cellular recognition/internalization, impaired the monocyte-adhering ability of endothelial cells and lipid deposition in macrophages. Moreover, exogenous GM3 treatment also significantly decreased blood lipid levels and atherosclerotic lesion areas in atherosclerotic mice. The data imply that exogenous GM3 had an inhibitory effect on atherogenesis, suggesting a protective role of a GM3-enriched microenvironment in atherosclerotic plaques and implying a possibility of exogenous GM3 as an anti-atherosclerotic drug.

Chemoenzymatically synthesized GM3 analogues as potential therapeutic agents to recover nervous functionality after injury by inducing neurite outgrowth.

Ganglioside GM3 is implicated in a variety of physiological and pathological processes. Due to GM3 exposes on the outer surface of cell membranes, it is strongly associated with cell adhesion, motility and differentiation. Neurite outgrowth is a key process in the development of functional neuronal circuits and regeneration of the nervous system after injury. In the present study, we used enzymatic hydrolysis and chemical synthesis to obtain novel galactose containing GM3 analogues. By enzymatic hydrolysis to prepare GM3 building block, we can avoid multiple chemical procedures. Next, we employed the PC12 cells as a model to evaluate the effects of GM3 analogues on neurite outgrowth with or without NGF induction. The biological tests showed that GM3 analogues could induce neurite outgrowth, which provides the valuable sights for potential nervous system treatment after injury.

Ganglioside GM3 suppresses lipopolysaccharide-induced inflammatory responses in rAW 264.7 macrophage cells through NF-κB, AP-1, and MAPKs signaling.

Gangliosides are known to specifically inhibit vascular leukocyte recruitment and consequent interaction with the injured endothelium, the basic inflammatory process. In this study, we have found that the production of nitric oxide (NO), a main regulator of inflammation, is suppressed by GM3 on murine macrophage RAW 264.7 cells, when induced by LPS. In addition, GM3 attenuated the increase in cyclooxyenase-2 (COX-2) protein and mRNA levels in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-activated RAW 264.7 cells in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, GM3 inhibited the expression and release of pro-inflammatory cytokines of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß) in RAW 264.7 macrophages. At the intracellular level, GM3 inhibited LPS-induced nuclear translocation of nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) and activator protein (AP)-1 in RAW 264.7 macrophages. We, therefore, investigated whether GM3 affects mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) phosphorylation, a process known as the upstream signaling regulator. GM3 dramatically reduced the expression levels of the phosphorylated forms of ERK, JNK, and p38 in LPS-activated RAW 264.7 cells. These results indicate that GM3 is a promising suppressor of the vascular inflammatory responses and ganglioside GM3 suppresses the LPS-induced inflammatory response in RAW 264.7 macrophages by suppression of NF-κB, AP-1, and MAPKs signaling. Accordingly, GM3 is suggested as a beneficial agent for the treatment of diseases that are associated with inflammation.

Ganglioside GM3 induces cumulus cell apoptosis through inhibition of epidermal growth factor receptor-mediated PI3K/AKT signaling pathways during in vitro maturation of pig oocytes.

Gangliosides are components of the mammalian plasma membrane that help regulate receptor signaling. Ganglioside GM3, for example, plays an important role in initiating apoptosis in cancer cells; however, physiological roles for GM3 in normal processes, such as during pig oocyte maturation, are not clear. The aim of this study was to investigate the functional link between GM3 and cellular apoptosis in porcine cumulus-oocyte-complexes (COCs) during in vitro maturation. Our results indicated that denuded oocytes possess less ST3GAL5, a GM3-synthesizing enzyme, than cumulus cells or COCs after 44 hr of in vitro maturation. GM3 also affected the meiotic maturation of cultured pig oocytes, as evaluated by orcein staining. In vitro treatment of COCs with exogenous GM3 also reduced cumulus cell expansion, the proportion of meiotic maturation, and increased cumulus cell transcription of PTX3, TNFAIP6, and HAS2. Interestingly, GM3 treatment reduced the expression of Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR)-mediated Phosphoinositide 3-kinase/AKT signaling proteins in COCs in a concentration-dependent manner, instead increasing the abundance of pro-apoptotic factors such as AIF, activated Caspase 9, cleaved PARP1, and Caspase 3 were. Thus, GM3 might affect porcine oocyte maturation via suppression of EGFR-mediated PI3K/AKT signaling and/or induction of apoptosis during in vitro maturation.

Monosialyl Ganglioside GM3 Decreases Apolipoprotein B-100 Secretion in Liver Cells.

Some sialic acid-containing glycolipids are known to regulate development of atherosclerosis with accumulated plasma apolipoprotein B-100 (Apo-B)-containing lipoproteins, because Apo-B as an atherogenic apolipoprotein is assembled mainly in VLDL and LDL. Previously, we have elucidated that disialyl GD3 promotes the microsomal triglyceride transfer protein (MTP) gene expression and secretion of triglyceride (TG)-assembled ApoB, claiming the GD3 role in ApoB lipoprotein secretion in liver cells. In the synthetic pathway of gangliosides, GD3 is synthesized by addition of a sialic acid residue to GM3. Thus, there should be some regulatory links between GM3 and GD3. In this study, exogenous and endogenous monosialyl GM3 has been examined how GM3 plays a role in ApoB secretion in Chang liver cells in a view point of MTP and ApoB degradation in the same cells. The level of GM3 ganglioside in the GM3 synthase gene-transfected cells was increased in the cell extract, but not in the medium. In addition, GM3 synthase gene-transfected cells showed a diminished secretion of TG-enriched ApoB with a lower content of TG in the medium. Exogenous GM3 treatment for 24 h exerted a dose dependent inhibitory effect on ApoB secretion together with TG, while a liver-specific albumin was unchanged, indicating that GM3 effect is limited to ApoB secretion. GM3 decreased the mRNA level of MTP gene, too. ApoB protein assembly dysregulated by GM3 indicates the impaired ApoB secretion is caused by a proteasome-dependent pathway. Treatment with small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) decreased ApoB secretion, but GM3-specific antibody did not. These results indicate that plasma membrane associated GM3 inhibits ApoB secretion, lowers development of atherosclerosis by decreasing the secretion of TG-enriched ApoB containing lipoproteins, suggesting that GM3 is an inhibitor of ApoB and TG secretion in liver cells. J. Cell. Biochem. 118: 2168-2181, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Ganglioside GM3 exerts opposite effects on motility via epidermal growth factor receptor and hepatocyte growth factor receptor-mediated migration signaling.

The ganglioside GM3 exerts its different effects via various growth factor receptors. The present study investigated and comparatively analyzed the opposing effects exerted by GM3 on the migration of mouse hepatocellular carcinoma Hepa1­6 cells via epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and hepatocyte growth factor receptor (HGFR/cMet). The results demonstrated that GM3 inhibited EGF­stimulated motility, but promoted HGF­stimulated motility of the Hepa1­6 cells via phosphatidylinositol 3­kinase/Akt­mediated migration signaling. It is well established that the main cytokines modulating cell proliferation, invasion and metastasis are different in different types of tumor. This difference may, at least in part, explain why GM3 exerted its actions in a tumor­type specific manner.

Differential uPAR recruitment in caveolar-lipid rafts by GM1 and GM3 gangliosides regulates endothelial progenitor cells angiogenesis.

Gangliosides and the urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) tipically partition in specialized membrane microdomains called lipid-rafts. uPAR becomes functionally important in fostering angiogenesis in endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) upon recruitment in caveolar-lipid rafts. Moreover, cell membrane enrichment with exogenous GM1 ganglioside is pro-angiogenic and opposite to the activity of GM3 ganglioside. On these basis, we first checked the interaction of uPAR with membrane models enriched with GM1 or GM3, relying on the adoption of solid-supported mobile bilayer lipid membranes with raft-like composition formed onto solid hydrophilic surfaces, and evaluated by surface plasmon resonance (SPR) the extent of uPAR recruitment. We estimated the apparent dissociation constants of uPAR-GM1/GM3 complexes. These preliminary observations, indicating that uPAR binds preferentially to GM1-enriched biomimetic membranes, were validated by identifying a pro-angiogenic activity of GM1-enriched EPCs, based on GM1-dependent uPAR recruitment in caveolar rafts. We have observed that addition of GM1 to EPCs culture medium promotes matrigel invasion and capillary morphogenesis, as opposed to the anti-angiogenesis activity of GM3. Moreover, GM1 also stimulates MAPKinases signalling pathways, typically associated with an angiogenesis program. Caveolar-raft isolation and Western blotting of uPAR showed that GM1 promotes caveolar-raft partitioning of uPAR, as opposed to control and GM3-challenged EPCs. By confocal microscopy, we have shown that in EPCs uPAR is present on the surface in at least three compartments, respectively, associated to GM1, GM3 and caveolar rafts. Following GM1 exogenous addition, the GM3 compartment is depleted of uPAR which is recruited within caveolar rafts thereby triggering angiogenesis.

Synthesis and cytotoxicity assay of four ganglioside GM3 analogues.

A concise and efficient synthetic route for preparation of four ganglioside GM3 analogues was described. The key step is a highly regioselective and stereoselective α-sialylation from a suitably protected glycoside acceptor with a sialyl xanthate to provide the sialo-oligosaccharide in good yield. The cytotoxic properties of the synthetic gangliosides were evaluated against normal human keratinocytes and human HCT116 and K562 cancer cells. Two of them exhibited good antiproliferative activity and displayed a better cytotoxicity against cancer cell than HaCaT normal cell.

Synergistic inhibition of cell migration by tetraspanin CD82 and gangliosides occurs via the EGFR or cMet-activated Pl3K/Akt signalling pathway.

The metastasis suppressor CD82/KAI-1, which is a member of the tetraspanin superfamily, has been proposed to exert its activity together with glycosphingolipids. However, the mechanism of CD82 inhibition has not been fully elucidated. The present study aimed to investigate the synergistic inhibition of cell migration by the tetraspanin CD82 and gangliosides and to correlate this inhibition with activation of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and hepatocyte growth factor receptor (HGFR/cMet) in Hepa1-6 cell lines, whose motility and migration is stimulated by epidermal growth factor (EGF) and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) in vitro. We found that Hepa1-6 cells transfected with the CD82 gene exhibited decreased migration in response to EGF and HGF. EGF-stimulated phosphorylation of EGFR at Tyr1173 was inhibited in these cells, which contributed to the attenuation of EGFR. Ectopic expression of CD82 in Hepa1-6 cells inhibited HGF-stimulated tyrosine phosphorylation of cMet at Tyr1313 and Tyr1365 without affecting the expression of cMet. These inhibitory effects were enhanced when CD82 was introduced with Ganglioside GM3 alone or GM2/GM3. Reduction of CD82 expression by RNA interference together with depletion of glycosphingolipids with P4 significantly enhanced cell motility and increased the expression of EGFR and its phosphorylation at Tyr1173 in response to EGF. Increased cell motility and HGF-dependent activation of cMet at Tyr1313 and Tyr1365 resulted from decreased CD82 levels and increased GM3. Furthermore, CD82 expression selectively attenuated EGFR and cMet signalling via phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase/Akt but had no affect on the activity of the MAPK signalling pathway. These results suggest that the synergistic effects of CD82 and GM3 or GM2/GM3 on EGFR expression and phosphorylation and cMet activation are responsible for CD82 inhibition of EGF- and HGF-dependent cell motility and migration of Hepa1-6 cells.

Ganglioside GM3 promotes HGF-stimulated motility of murine hepatoma cell through enhanced phosphorylation of cMet at specific tyrosine sites and PI3K/Akt-mediated migration signaling.

Ganglioside GM3 plays a well-documented and important role in the regulation of tumor cell proliferation, invasion, and metastasis by modulating tyrosine kinase growth factor receptors. However, the effect of GM3 on the hepatocyte growth factor receptor (HGFR, cMet) has not been fully delineated. In the current study, we investigated how GM3 affects cMet signaling and HGF-stimulated cell motility and migration using three hepatic cancer cell lines of mouse (Hca/A2, Hca/16A3, and Hepa1-6). Decreasing GM3 expression with the use of P4, a specific inhibitor for ganglioside synthesis inhibited the HGF-stimulated phosphorylation of cMet and activity of PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. In contrast, the increased expression of GM3 as a result of adding exogenous GM3 enhanced the HGF-stimulated phosphorylation of cMet and activity of PI3K/Akt signaling pathway. Furthermore, HGF-stimulated cell motility and migration in vitro were inhibited by reduced expression of GM3 and enhanced by increased expression of GM3. All the observations indicate that ganglioside GM3 promotes HGF-stimulated motility of murine hepatoma cell through enhanced phosphorylation of cMet at specific tyrosine sites and PI3K/Akt-mediated migration signaling.

Deacetylated GM3 promotes uPAR-associated membrane molecular complex to activate p38 MAPK in metastatic melanoma.

GM3, the simplest ganglioside, regulates cell proliferation, migration, and invasion by influencing cell signaling at the membrane level. Although the classic N-acetylated form of GM3 (NeuAcLacCer) is commonly expressed and has been well studied, deacetylated GM3 (NeuNH2LacCer, d-GM3) has been poorly investigated, despite its presence in metastatic tumors but not in noninvasive melanomas or benign nevi. We have recently found that d-GM3 stimulates cell migration and invasion by activating urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) signaling to augment matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) function. However, the mechanisms by which d-GM3/uPAR increase MMP-2 expression and activation are not clear. By modifying the expression of d-GM3 genetically and biochemically, we found that decreasing d-GM3 expression inhibits, whereas overexpressing d-GM3 stimulates, p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) activity to influence MMP-2 expression and activation. p38 MAPK (p38) activation requires the formation of a membrane complex that contains uPAR, caveolin-1, and integrin α5ß1 in membrane lipid rafts. In addition, knocking down or inhibiting focal adhesion kinase (FAK), phosphoinositide 3-kinase (PI3K), or Src kinase significantly reduces d-GM3-induced p38 phosphorylation and activation. Taken together, these results suggest that d-GM3 enhances the metastatic phenotype by activating p38 signaling through uPAR/integrin signaling with FAK, PI3K, and Src kinase as intermediates. Elucidation of the mechanisms by which d-GM3, a newly discovered, potential biomarker of metastatic melanomas, promotes cell metastasis will help us to understand the function of d-GM3 in metastatic melanomas and may lead to novel GM3-based cancer therapies.

Ganglioside GM3 inhibits hepatoma cell motility via down-regulating activity of EGFR and PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.

Two related sublines derived from murine ascites hepatoma cell lines Hca-F25, which were selected for their markedly different metastatic potential to lymph nodes, were found to be distinct in their ganglioside patterns. The low metastatic cell line (HcaP) contained a major ganglioside GM3, whereas the high metastatic cell line (HcaF) contained a major ganglioside GM2. Suppression of GM3 by P4 enhanced the mobility and migration of the low metastatic HcaP cells in vitro. Increase in GM3 content in high metastatic HcaF cells by addition of exogenous GM3 inhibited the mobility and migration. These results suggested that the differences in lymphatic metastasis potential between these two cell lines could be attributed to the differences in their ganglioside compositions, and GM3 could suppress the motility and migration of these cells. Further, we investigated the mechanism by which GM3 suppressed the cell mobility and migration. The results showed that suppression of GM3 synthesis by P4 in low metastatic HcaP cells promoted PKB/Akt phosphorylation at Ser473 and Thr308, and phosphorylation of EGFR at the Tyr1173. In contrast, increase in GM3 content in high metastatic HcaF cells by addition of exogenous GM3 into the culture medium suppressed phosphorylation of PKB/Akt and EGFR at the same residues. Taken together, these results suggested that the mechanism of GM3-suppressed cell motility and migration may involve the inhibition of phosphorylation of EGFR and the activity of PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.

Glycosphingolipids regulate ameloblastin expression in dental epithelial cells.

Neurotrophin 4 (NT-4) and its receptors regulate the differentiation of ameloblasts in tooth development. Gangliosides, sialic acids that contain glycosphingolipids (GSLs), are involved in a variety of membrane-associated cell physiological functions such as ligand-receptor signal transmission. However, the expression patterns and functions of GSLs during tooth development remain unclear. In this study, we identified strong expressions of GM3 and LacCer in dental epithelium, which give rise to differentiation into enamel-secreting ameloblasts. Exogenous GM3 and LacCer in dental epithelial cells induced the expression of ameloblastin (Ambn), while it was also interesting that GM3 synergistically exerted enhancement of NT-4-mediated Ambn expression. In addition, consistently exogenous GM3 and LacCer in dental epithelial cells induced distinct activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2), an event upstream of the expression of Ambn. Furthermore, depletion of GSLs from dental epithelial cells by D-threo-1-phenyl-2-decanoylamino-3-morpholino-1-propanol (D-PDMP) inhibited Ambn expression as well as phosphorylation of ERK1/2. In contrast, exogenous addition of GM3 or LacCer rescued the phosphorylation of ERK1/2 repressed by pre-treatment with D-PDMP. Taken together, these results suggest that GM3 and LacCer are essential for NT-4-mediated Ambn expression, and contribute to dental epithelial cell differentiation into ameloblasts.

GD1a modulates GM-CSF-induced cell proliferation.

Gangliosides have been extensively described to be involved in the proliferation and differentiation of various cell types, such including hematopoietic cells. Our previous studies on murine models of stroma-mediated myelopoiesis have shown that gangliosides are required for optimal capacity of stromal cells to support proliferation of myeloid precursor cells, being shed to the supernatant and selectively incorporated into myeloid cell membranes. Here we describe the effect of gangliosides on the specific granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF)-induced proliferation. For that, we used the monocytic FDC-P1 cell line, which is dependent upon GM-CSF for survival and proliferation. Cells were cultured in the presence of GM-CSF and exogenous gangliosides (GM3, GD1a or GM1) or in the absence of endogenous ganglioside synthesis by the use of a ceramide-synthase inhibitor, D-PDMP. We observed that exogenous addition of GD1a enhanced the GM-CSF-induced proliferation of the FDC-P1 cells. Also, we detected an increase in the expression of the α isoform of the GM-CSF receptor (GMRα) as well as of the transcription factor C/EBPα. On the contrary, inhibition of glucosylceramide synthesis was accompanied by a decrease in cell proliferation, which was restored upon the addition of exogenous GD1a. We also show a co-localization of GD1a and GMR by immunocytochemistry. Taken together, our results suggest for the first time that ganglioside GD1a play a role on the modulation of GM-CSF-mediated proliferative response, which might be of great interest not only in hematopoiesis, but also in other immunological processes, Alzheimer disease, alveolar proteinosis and wherever GM-CSF exerts its effects.