GD2 ganglioside biosynthesis is a distinct biochemical event in human melanoma tumor progression.

Gangliosides from cell cultures established from melanocytic lesions, representing different stages of melanoma tumor progression, were analyzed by chemical and immunological means on thin-layer chromatograms. The GD2 ganglioside and N-acetylgalactosaminyl transferase, which catalyzes the biosynthesis of GD2 from its precursor GD3, were detected in cultures established from advanced primary and metastatic melanomas, but not in cultures of normal melanocytes. Immunohistochemical studies on tissue sections from all progression stages confirmed GD2 expression only in these advanced lesions. A distinct biochemical event thus coincides with the onset of faster growth and acquisition of metastatic competence in human melanoma tumor progression.