A2B5 surface ganglioside binding distinguishes between two GFAP-positive clones from a human glioma-derived cell line.

A human glioma-derived cell line which expresses both the astrocytic markers, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) and glutamine synthetase (GS) and cell surface gangliosides recognised by the A2B5 monoclonal antibody has been cloned. Two clones are described, which are A2B5-positive and A2B5-negative, respectively. These neoplastic clones may provide a suitable in vitro model with which to assess the significance of surface ganglioside expression in relation to function and lineage of mammalian glia.