TLC in Structure and Recognition Studies of Glycosphingolipids

Glycosphingolipids (GSLs) are primarily located in the plasma membrane of animal cells, but are also found in association with intracellular organelles (1 ,2 ) GSLs consist of two structural elements: a lipophilic membrane anchor, the ceramide portion, which is formed by a long chain aminoalcohol and a fatty acid, and a hydrophilic carbohydrate moiety, which protrudes from the cell surface. Structures and functions of GSLs have been widely reviewed (3 –8 ). They are divided into three main classes: neutral GSLs and acidic sialic acid-and sulfate-containing GSLs, the gangliosides and the sulfatides, respectively. Most GSLs can be grouped into one of four main structural families: the ganglio-, globo-, lacto-, and/or neolacto-series. Structures of neutral GSLs and gangliosides used in this protocol are listed in Tables 1 and 2 , respectively. Their nomenclature follows the IUPAC-IUB recommendations (9 ) and the nomenclature of Svennerholm (10 ). Sialic acids are designated according to the suggestions of Reuter and Schauer (11 ).