Gangliosides of human, bovine, and rabbit plasma

Glycosyltransferases and their use in assessing oligosaccharide structure and structure-function relationships.

The composition, structure and function of lipids in the tissues of ruminant animals.

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the structural, organizational, and functional changes of membrane glycolipids in association with the malignant transformation of cells. Evidence has pointed toward the relation of certain surface properties, such as contact inhibitability, intercellular linkages, and antigenicity of cells, with the structure and function of membrane-bound glycolipid or glycoprotein and their related enzymes. Tumor cells, whether transformed by viruses or by chemicals, exhibit various biological abnormalities related to the function of cell surface membranes. The philosophy behind the recent development of cell surface biology is that plasma membrane is a regulatory organelle for cellular metabolism and replication, as well as for intercellular recognition, and that uncontrolled growth of cancer cells occurs under “epigenetic” regulatory dysfunction of cell surface membranes. The chapter explains the significance of membrane glycolipid changes in the regulation of cell growth and intercellular linkages, along with some comments and speculations.

Glycolipids Of Tumor Cell Membrane

Publisher Summary Blood group antigens are gene-dependent structures expressing the “individuality” of cell surfaces, body fluids, and secretions, just as histo-compatibility antigens express “individuality” of cell surfaces alone. When a virus attacks a person with different antigenic composition, that person may respond with antibodies directed against the antigens acquired by the virus from the cell membrane of its previous host, and so may be better protected against the viral infection. The greater the heterogeneity with respect to cell surface structure, the more difficult is the propagation of viral infection, due to immune recognition. Direct structural studies have been undertaken in which partial hydrolysis of blood group substances, structural identification of fragments, and immuno-specific activities of these fragments were of particular importance. For partial hydrolysis to obtain oligosaccharide fragments, various methods have been developed. It is known that about two-thirds of the blood group substances become dialyzable when heated at 100°C at a weakly alkaline pH with barium carbonate.

Herbert Wiegandt

Papers

Gangliosides of extraneuronal tissue.