GANGLIOSIDE PATTERNS AND PHENOTYPIC CHARACTERISTICS IN A NORMAL VARIANT AND A TRANSFORMED BACK VARIANT OF A SIMIAN VIRUS 40-INDUCED HAMSTER TUMOR CELL LINE

Ganglioside patterns of a cloned Simian virus 40- (SV40) induced hamster tumor cell (Cl₂TSV₅-S), its normal variant (Cl₂TSV₅-R) which are Cl₂TSV₅-S gradually adapted to grow in the presence of 2 µg/ml actinomycin D and exhibit certain normal phenotypic characteristics, and its back variant (Cl₂TSV₅-RR), which are Cl₂TSV₅-R cells grown in the absence of actinomycin D for more than 60 passages and which exhibit greater phenotypic similarity to Cl₂TSV₅-S cells, have been analyzed. All three cell lines contain N(acetylneuraminyl) galactosylglycosyl ceramide (hematoside, GM₃), N-acetylgalactosaminyl (N-acetylneuraminyl) galactosylglucosyl ceramide (GM₂), and a higher ganglioside tentatively identified as disialohematoside. However, Cl₂TSV₅-R have more GM₂ than Cl₂TSV₅-S whereas Cl₂TSV₅-RR contain an intermediate amount of GM₂. The amount of GM₂ is correlative with the activity of UDP-N-acetylgalactosamine: hematoside N-acetylgalactosaminyl transferase in the extract of the three cell lines and with their agglutination by wheat germ agglutinin.