Growth and motility of microvascular endothelium are modulated by the relative concentration of gangliosides in the medium.

The data reported were obtained as an attempt to understand whether the change in total concentration and relative ratios of the 3 major corneal gangliosides (GM3, GM2, GD3) previously observed in corneas stimulated by an angiogenic molecule (Ziche et al., 1989) was a relevant event in the angiogenic response of the tissue. The effect on endothelial cell growth was tested for the 3 corneal gangliosides added singly to the culture medium, and GM3 was found to possess a substantial growth inhibitory effect as compared to GM2 and GD3. The growth-limiting effect of GM3 was counteracted to a different degree by the addition of a second ganglioside to the culture medium. A mixture of GM3 + GM2 + GD3 in the proportion similar to that found in the cornea stimulated by an angiogenic molecule was able to sustain a sharp increment in cell growth and motility when added to cultures of capillary endothelium. On the contrary, when the 3 components of the mixture were in the proportion present in the normal cornea, the increment in growth or motility did not occur. A simple change in the relative proportions of the 3 gangliosides was sufficient to trigger or prevent an increment in growth and motility of the endothelial cells. These data in vitro suggest that the changes in concentration and relative ratios of the 3 major corneal gangliosides observed in vivo when the cornea was stimulated by an angiogenic molecule were an event targeted to favour growth and mobilization of the capillary endothelium located within the limbal vessels at the periphery of the cornea.