Charbohydrate-mediated protein-protein interaction at membrane surface

In Parkinson’s disease, the specific events causing neuronal disfunction and death are still elusive. We recently reported that the soluble GM1 oligosaccharide (OligoGM1) administered to neuroblastoma cells, has neurotrophic and neuroprotective properties. Molecular modelling suggests the formation of a stable trimeric complex between OligoGM1 and TrkA and NGF proteins, but the details of their specific interaction are not well understood. We are currently working at discriminating among possible scenarios and we here propose to detect by neutron reflection the possible direct interaction between membrane-embedded GM1 and the soluble portion of TrkA and NGF. A synergistic action of the two proteins will be also investigated. In a wider perspective, our results will define a new paradigm on the modality of interactions between gangliosides and proteins at membrane surface.