GM3 (red) and GM1 (green) at the opposite ends of a T cell.
Mañes/NAS
Tcells assemble different rafts at the front and rear of the cell as they gear up to move. This is the conclusion of Santos Mañes (Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Spain) and colleagues, who believe that the distinct rafts help T cells to do two very different things at the front and back of the cell.
Mañes concentrated on two gangliosides called GM1 and GM3—both markers for rafts and, in fibroblasts, both located at the leading edge of the moving cell. In T cells, however, Mañes found that GM3 was at the front of the cell, whereas GM1 was at the back.
The different segregation of the gangliosides and associated proteins makes sense, based on the biology of the two cell types. Fibroblasts grip tightly to their substrate as they crawl forward,...
