Nerve growth factor-induced neurite formation in PC12 cells is independent of endogenous cellular gangliosides

The PC12 rat pheochromocytoma cell line is an established model for nerve growth factor (NGF)-induced neurite formation. It has been shown that when gangliosides are added to the culture medium of PC12 cells, NGF-induced neurite formation of PC12 cells is enhanced. To determine the role of endogenous cellular gangliosides themselves in NGF-elicited neurite formation, we depleted cellular gangliosides using the new specific glucosylceramide synthase inhibitor, d,l-threo-1-phenyl-2-hexadecanoylamino-3-pyrrolidino-1-propanol·HCl (PPPP). 0.5–2 µM PPPP rapidly inhibited ganglioside synthesis and depleted cellular gangliosides. Nonetheless, over a concentration range of 5–100 ng/ml NGF, in both low serum and serum-free medium, neurite formation was normal. Even pretreatment of PC12 cells for up to 6 days with 1 µM PPPP followed by cotreatment with PPPP and NGF for 10 days, still did not inhibit neurite formation. The conclusion that ganglioside depletion did not block neurite formation stimulated by NGF was supported by the lack of effect of PPPP, under these same conditions, on cellular acetylcholine esterase activity, a neuronal differentiation marker (73.8 ± 12.1 versus 67.2 ± 4.6 nmol/min/mg protein at 50 ng/ml NGF; control versus 1 µM PPPP). These findings, together with previous studies showing enhancement of NGF-induced neurite formation by exogenous gangliosides, underscore the vastly different effects that exogenous gangliosides and endogenous gangliosides may have upon cellular functions.