What is the Difference Between Cerebroside and Ganglioside

Cerebroside and ganglioside are two different types of glycolipids. Glycolipids (glycosphingolipids) are lipids that contain sugar molecules. The sugar molecule can be a monosaccharide, oligosaccharide, or polysaccharide. Glycolipids are structural lipid molecules generally found on the extracellular face of the eukaryotic cellular membrane. They comprise carbohydrates, fatty acids, sphingolipids, or a glycerol group.

The key difference between cerebroside and ganglioside is their structure. Cerebroside is a type of glycosphingolipid with a single sugar linked to ceramide, while ganglioside is a type of glycosphingolipid with an oligosaccharide fragment linked to ceramide.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What is Cerebroside  
3. What is Ganglioside
4. Similarities – Cerebroside and Ganglioside
5. Cerebroside vs Ganglioside in Tabular Form
6. Summary – Cerebroside vs Ganglioside
7. FAQ: Cerebroside and Ganglioside

What is Cerebroside?

Cerebroside is the simplest neutral glycolipid or glycosphingolipid. It has a single sugar that is linked to ceramide. Therefore, cerebroside has a monosaccharide as sugar. Cerebroside is formed by joining a monosaccharide connected directly to the –OH at C1 of the ceramide moiety.

Figure 01: Cerebroside

Cerebroside is found primarily in the brain and in the peripheral nervous tissue. Furthermore, cerebroside acts as an insulator and is mainly involved in providing a protective coating to the nerve cells in the brain.

What is Ganglioside?

Ganglioside is a complex glycolipid or glycosphingolipid. It contains ceramide, a number of sugar groups (oligosaccharides), and sialic acid. Ganglioside is formed by the joining of complex oligosaccharides at the C1 head group.

Figure 02: Ganglioside

This type of glycolipid has a net negative charge at pH 7 due to the presence of N-acetyl neuraminic acid or sialic acid on one or more of its terminal sugar units. They are the main components of the animal’s cell membrane and are also abundantly found in the plasma membrane of the neurons of the brain.

Similarities Between Cerebroside and Ganglioside

1. Cerebroside and ganglioside are two different types of glycolipids.
2. Both have ceramide moiety and sugars.
3. Both are found in the brain.
4. They play an important role in protecting neurons.

Difference Between Cerebroside and Ganglioside

Definition

1. Cerebroside is a simple glycosphingolipid.
2. Ganglioside is a complex glycosphingolipid.

Charge

1. Cerebroside has a neutral charge.
2. Ganglioside has a negative charge.

Formation

1. Cerebroside is formed by joining a monosaccharide connected directly to the –OH at C1 of the ceramide moiety.
2. Ganglioside is formed by the joining of complex oligosaccharides at the C1 head group.

Found Abundantly

1. Cerebroside is found abundantly in the white matter of the brain.
2. Ganglioside is found abundantly in the grey matter of the brain.

Function

1. Cerebroside insulates the axons of the neurons in the brain, constitutes the substantial components of the extended plasma membrane of the oligodendrocytes, is also present in non-neural tissues such as the liver, spleen, lungs, and retina, and maintains water permeability in the skin.
2. Ganglioside involves in molecular recognition, modulation of membrane proteins and ions channels, in cell signalling and cell to cell communication.

Examples

1. Galactosylceramide is an example of cerebrosides.
2. GM1, GM2, GM3, GM1b and GD1α are examples of gangliosides.

Role in Diseases

1. A defect in the degradation of glucocerebrosides causes Gaucher’s disease, ceramide trihexoside (globotriaosylceramide) accumulation causes Fabry’s disease, and galactocerebroside accumulation causes Krabbe disease.
2. Changes in the ganglioside profile are associated with degenerative CNS conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, Huntington’s disease, multiple sclerosis, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

The following table summarizes the difference between cerebroside and ganglioside.

Summary – Cerebroside vs Ganglioside

Cerebroside and ganglioside are two different types of glycolipids. Cerebroside is a simple glycolipid with a single sugar linked to ceramide, while ganglioside is a complex glycolipid with an oligosaccharide fragment linked to ceramide. Cerebroside is found primarily in the brain and in the peripheral nervous tissue that provides a protective coating to the nerve cells, whereas ganglioside is primarily found in animal’s cell membrane and in the plasma membrane of the neurons that plays an important function in the modulation of membrane proteins and ion channels, in cell signalling and in the communication among cells. This is the summary of the difference between cerebroside and ganglioside.

FAQ: Cerebroside and Ganglioside

1. What is the function of cerebroside?

• Cerebrosides are found in bacteria and eukaryotes such as animals, plants, and fungi. Many cerebrosides serve as important components of animal muscle and nerve cell membranes.

2. Where are cerebrosides?

• Cerebrosides are abundantly present in brain white matter and nerve myelin sheaths, and they are present in small quantities within the cell membranes of other tissues.

3. What is the function of ganglioside?

• Gangliosides are enriched in microdomains in cell membrane known as lipid rafts and play important roles in the modulation of membrane proteins and ion channels, in cell signaling and in the communication among cells.

4. Where are gangliosides found?

• Gangliosides are found in tissues and body fluids and they are more abundantly expressed in the nervous system. In the brain, they are found in grey matter. In cells, gangliosides are mainly localized in the outer leaflets of plasma membranes.

5. What diseases are associated with gangliosides?

• The changes in the ganglioside profile were reported in degenerative CNS conditions, including Alzheimer’s (AD), multiple sclerosis (MS), Huntington’s disease (HD), and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Reference:

1. “Cerebrosides Analysis – Lipid Analysis.” Lipotype GmbH.
2. “Ganglioside – An Overview.” ScienceDirect.

Image Courtesy:

1. “Cerebroside” By Epithelyann – Own work (CC BY-SA 4.0) via Commons Wikimedia
2. “GM1 ganglioside” By Edgar181 (talk) – Own work (Public Domain) via Commons Wikimedia

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