Surface glycosaminoglycans as a differentiation cofactor in neuroblastoma cell cultures

The possible role of surface glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) in neuronal maturation occuring in neuroblastoma cultures has been investigated. GAGs of neuroblastoma cells, grown in suspension and monolayer, were labelled with 3H-glucosamine and 35S-sulfate. Neuron maturation, following cell adhesion to culture dishes, is accompanied by an increased ability of the cells to retain heparan sulfate (HS) on their surface, which is otherwise lost into the culture medium. The role of surface HS as a cofactor of cellular differentiation is discussed.