Separation of gangliosides using cyclodextrin in capillary zone electrophoresis

Gangliosides are glycosphingolipids containing sialic acid. These glycolipids have been suggested to play important roles in biological processes such as cell growth, differentiation and malignant transformation. Based on these proposed biological functions, gangliosides can be used as diagnostic tools and therapeutics for various human diseases. In this study, capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) was used to determine the major gangliosides GM1, GD1a, GD1b and GT1b in mammalian brains, in addition to GM3 and Lac. Enhancement of selectivity and efficiency of separation was obtained by using 50 mM borate-phosphate buffer containing 16.5 mM alpha-cyclodextrin (alpha-CD). Under this condition, several forms of gangliosides were successfully separated from extracts of deer antler, apricot seed and rat brain. The results demonstrate that the CD-modified CZE is a useful method for detecting glycolipids from various biological matrices.