trisialoganglioside-gt1 and Adenocarcinoma

We studied ganglioside expression in 12 human metastatic brain tumors metastasized from colon (4), renal (3), lung (2), esophagus (1), pancreas (1), and mammary (1) carcinomas. GM3 was the major common ganglioside expressed in brain metastatic tumor tissues, and GT1b was also present in all the metastatic brain tumor tissues. The latter was identified by TLC-immunostaining and characterized structurally by secondary ion mass spectrometry combined with 'Far-Eastern blot'. The immunohistochemical analysis of frozen tissue sections confirmed localization of GT1b in the tumor cell membrane or cytosol. GT1b was shown to be expressed both in the primary colon carcinoma and the metastasis of a single patient by immunohistochemical procedure. In systemic carcinomas without brain metastasis, GM3 was a common major component, but no GT1b was detected. These findings indicate that GT1b is a brain metastasis-associated ganglioside. We speculate that the presence of GT1b would be a useful marker for estimating metastatic potentials to the brain.

Topics: Adenocarcinoma; Biomarkers, Tumor; Brain Neoplasms; Chromatography, Thin Layer; Colonic Neoplasms; Frozen Sections; G(M3) Ganglioside; Gangliosides; Humans; Immunohistochemistry; Kidney Neoplasms; Mass Spectrometry; Neoplasm Metastasis

The patterns of gangliosides and phospholipids and their relation to TSH response were examined in twenty-six malignant thyroid tumors (4 follicular, 6 papillary, 5 medullary, 11 anaplastic carcinomas) and thirty-six hyperplastic goiters. Thirteen thyroid tissues adjacent to benign tumors with no evidence of macroscopic or microscopic abnormalities were used as normal tissue. In normal thyroids the major ganglioside was GD3 (44%) and GM3 was the second ganglioside (20%). In minor amounts GD1a (8.6%), GD1b (6.2%), GT1b (5.7%) and GM1 (5.6%) were present. In hyperplastic goiters and in follicular carcinomas the patterns of gangliosides were similar to that of normal tissue except for GM3 which, in the last tissue, was higher (34%). In papillary carcinomas low levels of GM3 (11%) and GT1b (0.8%) with a high level of GD1b (12.6%) were found. In anaplastic carcinomas GM3 was very high (47%) whereas GD3 was low (18%). In these tumors also a high percentage (14.0%) of GD1a was found. In medullary carcinomas the lowest levels of GM3 (4%) with the highest level of GD3 (64%) were found. Although large differences of the gangliosides distribution were clearly encountered in the various pathological human thyroid, no correlation between lack of TSH response and some individual ganglioside could be made. No differences in the individual phospholipid in the various tissues studied were found.

Topics: Adenocarcinoma; Carcinoma; Carcinoma, Papillary; G(M3) Ganglioside; Gangliosides; Humans; Phospholipids; Thyroid Gland; Thyroid Neoplasms; Thyrotropin