Gangliosides in Neural Stem Cell Fate Determination and Nerve Cell Specification: Preparation and Administration.

Gangliosides are sialylated glycosphingolipids with essential yet enigmatic functions in both healthy and disease brains. Among them, GD3 represents the predominant glycosphingolipid species in neural stem cells (NSCs), comprising over 80% of the total. On the other hand, the expression of GM1 is upregulated through a GM1-modulated epigenetic gene regulation mechanism involving GM2 synthase. GM1, in turn, influences the transcriptional activity of neuronal genes to maintain neuronal functions. To elucidate the functional roles of gangliosides, we introduce methods to isolate GD3 and GM1 and administer them into the mouse brain to investigate their functions on NSC fate determination and nerve cell specification.