The Binding of Aβ42 Peptide Monomers to Sphingomyelin/Cholesterol/Ganglioside Bilayers Assayed by Density Gradient Ultracentrifugation

The binding of Aβ42 peptide monomers to sphingomyelin/cholesterol (1:1 mol ratio) bilayers containing 5 mol% gangliosides (either GM1, or GT1b, or a mixture of brain gangliosides) has been assayed by density gradient ultracentrifugation. This procedure provides a direct method for measuring vesicle-bound peptides after non-bound fraction separation. This centrifugation technique has rarely been used in this context previously. The results show that gangliosides increase by about two-fold the amount of Aβ42 bound to sphingomyelin/cholesterol vesicles. Complementary studies of the same systems using thioflavin T fluorescence, Langmuir monolayers or infrared spectroscopy confirm the ganglioside-dependent increased binding. Furthermore these studies reveal that gangliosides facilitate the aggregation of Aβ42 giving rise to more extended β-sheets. Thus, gangliosides have both a quantitative and a qualitative effect on the binding of Aβ42 to sphingomyelin/cholesterol bilayers.

Preparation of Ganglioside GM1 by Supercritical CO2 Extraction and Immobilized Sialidase

Monosialotetrahexosylganglioside (GM1) has good activity on brain diseases and was developed to be a drug applied in clinics for neurological disorders and nerve injury. It is difficult to isolate GM1 in industry scale from the brains directly. In this work, a simple and highly efficient method with high yield was developed for the isolation, conversion, and purification of GM1 from a pig brain. Gangliosides (GLS) were first extracted by supercritical CO2 (SCE). The optimum extraction time of GLS by SCE was 4 h, and the ratio of entrainer to acetone powder from the pig brain was 3:1 (v/w). GM1 was then prepared from GLS by immobilized sialidase and purified by reverse-phase silica gel. Sodium alginate embedding was used for the immobilization of sialidase. Under the optimized method, the yield of high-purity GM1 was around 0.056%. This method has the potential to be applied in the production of GM1 in the industry.

Influence of Brain Gangliosides on the Formation and Properties of Supported Lipid Bilayers

This is a comprehensive study of the effects of the four major brain gangliosides (GM1, GD1b, GD1a, and GT1b) on the adsorption and rupture of phospholipid vesicles on SiO2 surfaces for the formation of supported lipid bilayer (SLB) membranes. Using quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D) we show that gangliosides GD1a and GT1b significantly slow the SLB formation process, whereas GM1 and GD1b have smaller effects. This is likely due to the net ganglioside charge as well as the positions of acidic sugar groups on ganglioside glycan head groups. Data is included that shows calcium can accelerate the formation of ganglioside-rich SLBs. Using fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) we also show that the presence of gangliosides significantly reduces lipid diffusion coefficients in SLBs in a concentration-dependent manner. Finally, using QCM-D and GD1a-rich SLB membranes we measure the binding kinetics of an anti-GD1a antibody that has similarities to a monoclonal antibody that is a hallmark of a variant of Guillain-Barre syndrome.

Influence of Brain Gangliosides on the Formation and Properties of Supported Lipid Bilayers for Binding Kinetics Studies

This is a comprehensive study of the effects of the four major brain gangliosides (GM1, GD1b, GD1a, and GT1b) on the adsorption and rupture of phospholipid vesicles on SiO2 surfaces for the formation of supported lipid bilayer (SLB) membranes. Using quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D) we show that gangliosides GD1a and GT1b significantly slow the SLB formation process, whereas GM1 and GD1b have smaller effects. This is likely due to the net ganglioside charge as well as the positions of acidic sugar groups on ganglioside glycan head groups. Data is included that shows calcium can accelerate the formation of ganglioside-rich SLBs. Using fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) we also show that the presence of gangliosides significantly reduces lipid diffusion coefficients in SLBs in a concentration-dependent manner. Finally, using QCM-D and GD1a-rich SLB membranes we measure the binding kinetics of an anti-GD1a antibody that has similarities to a monoclonal antibody that is a hallmark of a variant of Guillain-Barre syndrome.

Influence of Brain Gangliosides on the Formation and Properties of Supported Lipid Bilayers for Binding Kinetics Studies

This is a comprehensive study of the effects of the four major brain gangliosides (GM1, GD1b, GD1a, and GT1b) on the adsorption and rupture of phospholipid vesicles on SiO2 surfaces for the formation of supported lipid bilayer (SLB) membranes. Using quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D) we show that gangliosides GD1a and GT1b significantly slow the SLB formation process, whereas GM1 and GD1b have smaller effects. This is likely due to the net ganglioside charge as well as the positions of acidic sugar groups on ganglioside glycan head groups. Data is included that shows calcium can accelerate the formation of ganglioside-rich SLBs. Using fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) we also show that the presence of gangliosides significantly reduces lipid diffusion coefficients in SLBs in a concentration-dependent manner. Finally, using QCM-D and GD1a-rich SLB membranes we measure the binding kinetics of an anti-GD1a antibody that has similarities to a monoclonal antibody that is a hallmark of a variant of Guillain-Barre syndrome.

Heme Oxygenase-1 May Affect Cell Signalling via Modulation of Ganglioside Composition

Heme oxygenase 1 (Hmox1), a ubiquitous enzyme degrading heme to carbon monoxide, iron, and biliverdin, is one of the cytoprotective enzymes induced in response to a variety of stimuli, including cellular oxidative stress. Gangliosides, sialic acid-containing glycosphingolipids expressed in all cells, are involved in cell recognition, signalling, and membrane stabilization. Their expression is often altered under many pathological and physiological conditions including cell death, proliferation, and differentiation. The aim of this study was to assess the possible role of Hmox1 in ganglioside metabolism in relation to oxidative stress. The content of liver and brain gangliosides, their cellular distribution, and mRNA as well as protein expression of key glycosyltransferases were determined inHmox1knockout mice as well as their wild-type littermates. To elucidate the possible underlying mechanisms between Hmox1 and ganglioside metabolism, hepatoblastoma HepG2 and neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y cell lines were used forin vitroexperiments. Mice lackingHmox1exhibited a significant increase in concentrations of liver and brain gangliosides and in mRNA expression of the key enzymes of ganglioside metabolism. A marked shift of GM1 ganglioside from the subsinusoidal part of the intracellular compartment into sinusoidal membranes of hepatocytes was shown inHmox1knockout mice. Induction of oxidative stress by chenodeoxycholic acidin vitroresulted in a significant increase in GM3, GM2, and GD1a gangliosides in SH-SY5Y cells and GM3 and GM2 in the HepG2 cell line. These changes were abolished with administration of bilirubin, a potent antioxidant agent. These observations were closely related to oxidative stress-mediated changes in sialyltransferase expression regulated at least partially through the protein kinase C pathway. We conclude that oxidative stress is an important factor modulating synthesis and distribution of gangliosidesin vivoandin vitrowhich might affect ganglioside signalling in higher organisms.