Investigating the Role of Membrane Environment in the Recognition of GD2 Ganglioside with Antibodies

Antibodies to the ganglioside GD2 are used therapeutically, although the mechanism of their interaction with tumor cells antigen is poorly understood. To study the effect of membrane environment on GD2 recognition by antibodies, three synthetic glycolipids-analogs of the ganglioside GD2-were obtained. These glycolipids differed in the length of their spacers and the type of lipid moiety. When inserted in the membrane of endothelial cells, they interacted with anti-GD2 antibodies in a paradoxical manner: the spatially most hindered variant (where the oligosaccharide is located in tight proximity to the membrane) interacted better than the others.