The comparison of glycosphingolipids isolated from an epithelial ovarian cancer cell line and a nontumorigenic epithelial ovarian cell line using MALDI-MS and MALDI-MS/MS

• GSLs were extracted from SKOV3 and T29 cells using Folch partition (FP).
• Seventeen neutral GSLs were detected in FP lower phases from both cell lines.
• Five neutral GSLs were detected only in FP lower phase of SKOV3 cells.
• Several gangliosides were detected in FP upper phases of SKOV3 and T29 cells.
• GSLs detected only in SKOV3 cells are more glycosylated than GSLs in T29 cells.

Glycosphingolipids (GSLs) are important biomolecules, which are linked to many diseases such as GSL storage disorders and cancer. Consequently, the expression of GSLs may be altered in ovarian cancer cell lines in comparison to apparently healthy cell lines. Here, differential expressions of GSLs in an epithelial ovarian cancer cell line SKOV3 and a nontumorigenic epithelial ovarian cell line T29 were studied using matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization-mass spectrometry (MALDI-MS) and MALDI-MS/MS. The isolation of GSLs from SKOV3 and T29 cell lines was carried out using Folch partition. GSLs were successfully detected by MALDI-MS, and structurally assigned by a comparison of their MALDI-MS/MS fragmentation patterns with MS/MS data found in SimLipid database. Additionally, LIPID MAPS was used to assign GSL ion masses in MALDI-MS spectra. Seventeen neutral GSLs were identified in Folch partition lower (chloroform/methanol) phases originating from both cell lines, while five globo series neutral GSLs were identified only in the Folch partition lower phase of SKOV3 cell line. Several different sialylated GSLs were detected in Folch partition upper (water/methanol) phases of SKOV3 and T29 cell lines. Overall, this study demonstrates the alteration and increased glycosylation of GSLs in an epithelial ovarian cancer cell line in comparison to a nontumorigenic epithelial ovarian cell line.

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