Ganglioside dependent return of TSH receptor function in a rat thyroid tumor with a TSH receptor defect.

The 1-8 rat thyroid tumor line with a thyrotropin and cholera toxin receptor defect and a deficiency in higher order membrane gangliosides is shown to regain both receptor functions with the in vivo resynthesis or the in vitro reconstitution of higher order gangliosides. Reconstitution was achieved by exposing primary cell cultures of the tumor to preparations of gangliosides from thyroid cells with functional thyrotropin receptor activity.