Biochemical Evidence on the Role of Gangliosides in Nerve-Endings

Abstract

The nervous system, compared to other tissues, is characterized by high ganglioside levels, most particularly of the tri- and tetra-sialogangliosides (WIEGANDT, 1968). This simple fact has led to many suggestions that gangliosides must have a neuro-specific function to match their neurospecific concentration and pattern. The purpose of this article is to examine the evidence that the gangliosides have a role in synaptic function, since it is at the synaptic region that the gangliosides seem to be concentrated.