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Gangliosides have been considered to modulate cell signals in the microdomain of the cell membrane, lipid/rafts, or glycolipid-enriched microdomain/rafts (GEM/rafts). In particular, cancer-associated gangliosides were reported to enhance the malignant properties of cancer cells. In fact, GD2-positive (GD2+) cells showed increased proliferation, invasion, and adhesion, compared with GD2-negative (GD2−) cells. However, the precise mechanisms by which gangliosides regulate cell signaling in GEM/rafts are not well understood. In order to analyze the roles of ganglioside GD2 in the malignant properties of melanoma cells, we searched for GD2-associating molecules on the cell membrane using the enzyme-mediated activation of radical sources combined with mass spectrometry, and integrin β1 was identified as a representative GD2-associating molecule. Then, we showed the physical association of GD2 and integrin β1 by immunoprecipitation/immunoblotting. Close localization was also shown by immuno-cytostaining and the proximity ligation assay. During cell adhesion, GD2+ cells showed multiple phospho-tyrosine bands, i.e., the epithelial growth factor receptor and focal adhesion kinase. The knockdown of integrin β1 revealed that the increased malignant phenotypes in GD2+ cells were clearly cancelled. Furthermore, the phosphor-tyrosine bands detected during the adhesion of GD2+ cells almost completely disappeared after the knockdown of integrin β1. Finally, immunoblotting to examine the intracellular distribution of integrins during cell adhesion revealed that large amounts of integrin β1 were localized in GEM/raft fractions in GD2+ cells before and just after cell adhesion, with the majority being localized in the non-raft fractions in GD2− cells. All these results suggest that GD2 and integrin β1 cooperate in GEM/rafts, leading to enhanced malignant phenotypes of melanomas.

Ganglioside GD2 Enhances the Malignant Phenotypes of Melanoma Cells by Cooperating with Integrins