CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

Gangliosides are a family of gycolipids characterized by containing a variable number of sialic acid residues. Nearly all animal cells contain at least some class of ganglioside in their membranes, but membranes from the central nervous system are characterized by their high content of these lipids. The synthesis of the oligosaccharide moiety of glycolipids is carried out in the Golgi complex. Here, I will discuss the cellular and molecular basis of the organization of the glycosylating machinery in the Golgi complex, with particular attention to the mutual relationships, subGolgi localization and intracellular traffic of glycolipid glycosyltransferases, and to their relationships with the corresponding glycolipid acceptors and sugar nucleotide donors. I will also discuss how the organization of the glycosylating machinery in the Golgi may adapt to events controlling glycolipid expression.