Hydrazinolysis of asparagine-linked sugar chains to produce free oligosaccharides

Novel approach to the study of the antigenicities and receptor functions of carbohydrate chains of glycoproteins

This report describes the construction of neoglycolipids as a novel approach to determining the antigenicities and receptor functions of minute amounts of oligosaccharides derived from glycoproteins. Reduced oligosaccharides are converted into oligosaccharide alditols by controlled selective periodate oxidation and conjugated to phosphatidyl ethanolamine dipalmitoyl by reductive amination. The resulting neoglycolipids can be rendered multivalent by binding to polyvinylchloride or silica plates or they can be incorporated into liposomes and their antigenicities and receptor activities determined in low concentrations by direct binding or inhibition of binding assays. This approach, which has been successfully used with two monoclonal antibodies and a plant lectin, should be widely applicable to the direct analysis of O- and N-glycosidically linked carbohydrate chains of glycoproteins and proteoglycans both as antigens and recognition structures of diverse receptor systems.

beta-Adrenergic stimulation alters oligosaccharide pyrophosphoryl dolichol metabolism in rat parotid acinar cells

beta-Adrenergic stimulation of rat parotid acinar cells markedly increases [3H]mannose incorporation into N-linked glycoproteins [Kousvelari, Grant, Banerjee, Newby & Baum (1984) Biochem. J. 222, 17-24]. More than 90% of this protein-bound [3H]mannose was preferentially incorporated into four secretory glycoproteins. The ratio of [3H]mannose/[14C]leucine present in these individual proteins was 1.7-4-fold greater with isoproterenol-treated cells than with untreated controls. In isoproterenol-stimulated cells, [3H]mannose incorporation into mannosylphosphoryl dolichol and oligosaccharide-PP-dolichol was increased 2-3-fold over that observed in unstimulated cells. Similarly, formation of mannosylated oligosaccharide-PP-dolichol was increased approx. 4-fold in microsomes prepared from isoproterenol-treated cells. Also, turnover of oligosaccharide-PP-dolichol was significantly increased (5-fold) by beta-adrenergic stimulation; the half-life for oligosaccharide-PP-dolichol decreased from 6 min in control cells to 1.2 min in isoproterenol-stimulated cells. By 15 min after isoproterenol addition to acinar cells, the specific radioactivity of parotid oligosaccharide moieties increased about 3-fold over the value observed in the absence of the agonist. Taken together, these results strongly suggest that elevation of N-linked protein glycosylation in rat parotid acinar cells after beta-adrenoreceptor stimulation resulted from significant enhancement in the synthesis of mannosylphosphoryl dolichol and oligosaccharide-PP-dolichol and the turnover of oligosaccharide-PP-dolichol.

Structures of the sugar chains of rabbit immunoglobulin G: occurrence of asparagine-linked sugar chains in Fab fragment

The asparagine-linked sugar chains of rabbit immunoglobulin G (IgG) and its Fc and Fab fragments were quantitatively liberated from the polypeptide portions by hydrazinolysis followed by N-acetylation and NaB3H4 reduction. After fractionation by paper electrophoresis, lectin chromatography, and gel filtration, their structures were studied by sequential exoglycosidase digestion in combination with methylation analysis. Rabbit IgG was shown to contain 2.3 mol of asparagine-linked sugar chains per molecule distributed in both the Fc and Fab fragments. The sugar chains were of the biantennary complex type containing four cores: Man alpha 1----6(Man alpha 1----3)(+/- GlcNAc beta 1----4)Man beta 1----4GlcNAc beta 1----4(+/- Fuc alpha 1----6)-GlcNAc. A total of 16 distinct neutral oligosaccharide structures was found after sialidase treatment. The galactose residue in the monogalactosylated oligosaccharides was present on either the alpha 1----3 or alpha 1----6 side of the trimannosyl core. The Fab fragments contained neutral, monosialylated, and disialylated oligosaccharides, whereas the Fc fragment contained only neutral and monosialylated structures. The oligosaccharides isolated from the Fab fragments also contained more galactose and bisecting N-acetylglucosamine residues than those from the Fc fragments.

Deglycosylation of alpha 1-proteinase inhibitor by endo-beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase F

The glycosidase endo-beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase F (endo F) from Flavobacterium meningosepticum was used for the deglycosylation of rat alpha 1-proteinase inhibitor (alpha 1 PI). alpha 1 PI containing three oligosaccharide side chains of the complex type was isolated from rat serum or from the medium of rat hepatocyte primary cultures. High-mannose-type alpha 1 PI or hybrid-type alpha 1 PI was isolated from the media of hepatocytes treated with 1-deoxymannojirimycin or swainsonine, respectively. The susceptibility of complex-type alpha 1 PI to endo F was studied in the presence of various detergents. 3-[(3-Cholamidopropyl)dimethylammonio]-1-propanesulfonate and octyl glucopyranoside turned out to be most effective. In the absence of detergents, digestion of alpha 1 PI with high concentrations of endo F and/or long times of incubation led to the formation of alpha 1 PI with one and two oligosaccharide side chains. In the presence of 0.5% octyl glucopyranoside, the major cleavage products were unglycosylated alpha 1 PI and alpha 1 PI carrying one carbohydrate side chain. In contrast to the complex-type alpha 1 PI, the high-mannose type can be totally deglycosylated by endo F even in the absence of detergents. The susceptibility of the hybrid-type alpha 1 PI to endo F is between that of the complex and the high-mannose types.

Association of rheumatoid arthritis and primary osteoarthritis with changes in the glycosylation pattern of total serum IgG

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a widely prevalent (1-3%) chronic systemic disease thought to have an autoimmune component; both humoral and cellular mechanisms have been implicated. Primary osteoarthritis (OA) is considered to be distinct from rheumatoid arthritis, and here damage is thought to be secondary to cartilage degeneration. In rheumatoid arthritis, immune complexes are present that consist exclusively of immunoglobulin, implying that this is both the 'antibody' (rheumatoid factor [RF]) and the 'antigen' (most commonly IgG). Autoantigenic reactivity has been localized to the constant-region (C gamma 2) domains of IgG. There is no evidence for a polypeptide determinant but carbohydrate changes have been reported. We have therefore conducted a study, simultaneously in Oxford and Tokyo, to compare in detail the N-glycosylation pattern of serum IgG (Fig. 1) isolated from normal individuals and from patients with either primary osteoarthritis or rheumatoid arthritis. The results, which required an evaluation of the primary sequences of approximately 1,400 oligosaccharides from 46 IgG samples, indicate that: (1) IgG isolated from normal individuals, patients with RA and patients with OA contains different distributions of asparagine-linked bi-antennary complex-type oligosaccharide structures, (2) in neither disease is the IgG associated with novel oligosaccharide structures, but the observed differences are due to changes in the relative extent of galactosylation compared with normal individuals. This change results in a 'shift' in the population of IgG molecules towards those carrying complex oligosaccharides, one or both of whose arms terminate in N-acetylglucosamine. These two arthritides may therefore be glycosylation diseases, reflecting changes in the intracellular processing, or post-secretory degradation of N-linked oligosaccharides.

Determination of the structure of the carbohydrate chains of prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase from sheep

Prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase was isolated from sheep seminal vesicles. Sugar analysis of the glycoprotein revealed the presence of mannose and N-acetylglucosamine only. The carbohydrate moiety was released from the polypeptide backbone by hydrazinolysis. After re-N-acetylation and reduction, the resulting mixture of oligosaccharide-alditols was fractionated on Bio-Gel P-4 and their structures were investigated by 500-MHz1H-NMR spectroscopy. The carbohydrate chains turned out to be of the oligomannoside type containing six to nine mannose residues. The largest and most abundant compound was established to be: (formula; see text) For the smaller structures heterogeneity occurs with respect to the outer alpha(1----2)-linked mannose residues. Furthermore, a small amount of Man6GlcNAc-ol (artefact of the hydrazinolysis procedure) was detected by 1H-NMR spectroscopy and fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry.

Structures of the carbohydrate moieties of two monoclonal human lambda-type immunoglobulin light chains

Human Bence Jones proteins of lambda type, Wh and Nei, both of which belong to subgroup II, contain an asparagine-linked sugar chain. Their carbohydrate moieties were liberated as oligosaccharides by hydrazinolysis and labeled by reduction with NaB3H4 after N-acetylation. Structural studies of each oligosaccharide by sequential exoglycosidase digestion in combination with methylation analysis revealed that Wh lambda contains the mono- and disialylated oligosaccharides (Formula: see text). These oligosaccharides are different from the oligosaccharides found in another lambda-type Bence Jones protein, Sm lambda, by Chandrasekaran et al. [Chandrasekaran, E. V., Mendicino, A., Garver, F. A., & Mendicino, J. (1981) J. Biol. Chem. 256, 1549-1555] and Garver et al. [Garver, F. A., Chang, L. S., Kiefer, C. R., Mendicino, J., Chandrasekaran, E. V., Isobe, T., & Osserman, E. F. (1981) Eur. J. Biochem. 115, 643-652].

Automatic amino acid and sugar analysis of glycoproteins

Amino acid analyzers were used for complete analyses of glycoproteins. The methods of analysis used were cation-exchange chromatography for amino acids, phosphoamino acids and amino sugars with ninhydrin as reagent, and anion-exchange chromatography for neutral sugars with copper Bicinchoninate as reagent. A separate program was developed for the analysis of charged sugar components, N-acetylneuraminic acid and amino sugars in one chromatogram. The possibility of detection of radioactively labelled components is also demonstrated. The detection limits and possibilities for column and reactor switches are discussed.

Sulfation of lutropin oligosaccharides with a cell-free system

Sulfate is covalently linked to the oligosaccharides on the alpha and beta subunits of bovine lutropin (luteinizing hormone; LH) but not to those on human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). Since the amino acid sequences of the pituitary and placental alpha subunits are homologous, comparison of their asparagine-linked sugars can provide information regarding tissue specificity of oligosaccharide maturation. To characterize this post-translational modification, we have developed a reconstituted cell-free sulfation system. Sulfate is incorporated into exogenously added glycoproteins by sulfotransferases from Triton X-100-lysed Golgi membranes in the presence of 3'-phosphoadenosine 5'-phospho[35S]sulfate, which is generated from [35S]sulfate by a ribosome-free supernate from Krebs ascites tumor cells. LH is sulfated by pituitary and liver membranes but not by those from placenta. Desialylated hCG (AshCG) is sulfated by membranes from placenta and pituitary, but not liver, while hCG is not sulfated by any of these membranes. Endoglycosidase F releases all the incorporated sulfate from LH in the form of a heterogeneous mixture of mono- and disulfated oligosaccharides. In contrast, the sulfate added to AshCG is apparently attached to peptide rather than oligosaccharide. As found with the cell-free system, sulfate metabolically incorporated into LH by pituitary cells is present on a heterogeneous population of mono- and disulfated oligosaccharides. Thus the cell-free sulfation system accurately duplicates the in vivo process.

Evidence for the glycoprotein nature of the crystalline cell wall surface layer of Bacillus stearothermophilus strain NRS2004/3a

The surface layer of Bacillus stearothermophilus strain NRS2004/3a was isolated and chemically characterized. The results of these initial studies lead to the conclusion that the cell surface protein is glycosylated.

Cleavage of oligosaccharides by rat kidney sialidase. Influence of substrate structure

The specificity of the sialidase activity present in rat kidney cortex (12 000 X g pellet) was studied with various tritiated oligosaccharidic substrates: (i) alpha NeuAc2----3 beta Gal1----4Glc-itol[3H], alpha NeuAc2----6 beta Gal1----4Glc-itol[3H]. and alpha NeuAc2----8 alpha NeuAc2----3 beta Gal1----4Glc-itol[3H] from bovine colostrum; (ii) alpha NeuAc2----6 beta Gal1----4 beta GlcNAc-itol[3H], alpha NeuAc2----3 beta Gal1----4 beta GlcNAcl----2 alpha Man1----3 beta Man1----4 GlcNAc-itol[3H] alpha NeuAc2----6 beta Gal1----4 beta GlcNAc1----2 alpha Man1----3(beta Gal 1----4GlcNAc1----2 alpha Man 1----6)beta Man1----4GlcNAc-itol[3H]et alpha NeuAc2----6 beta Gal1----4 beta GlcNAc1----2 alpha Man1----3(alpha NeuAc2----6 beta Gal1----4 beta GlcNAc1----2 alpha Man1----6)beta Man1 4GlNAc-itol[3H] isolated from the urine of a patient with mucolipidosis I. The enzyme cleaves alpha 2----3 and alpha 2----8 linkages at a greater rate than the alpha 2----6 bonds. Its activity decreases with the length of the oligosaccharidic chain. Substitution of a glucose moiety by Nacetylglucosamine results in diminished activity. The specificity of rat kidney sialidase differs from that reported for other mammalian of viral sialidases.

Sialic acid-containing sugar chains of hen ovalbumin and ovomucoid

The acidic oligosaccharide fractions released from hen ovalbumin and ovomucoid by hydrazinolysis contain both sialyloligosaccharides and sulfated oligosaccharides. The sialyloligosaccharides were converted into neutral oligosaccharides by sialidase digestion, and separated from sulfated oligosaccharides by paper electrophoresis. Structural studies of these neutral oligosaccharides showed that the oligosaccharides of ovalbumin have different structural characteristics from those of ovomucoid, i.e., all sialyloligosaccharides from ovomucoid contain a pentasaccharide, alpha-D-Manp-(1----3)-[alpha-D-Manp-(1----6)]-beta-D-Manp -(1----4)-GlcpNAc- (1----4)-GlcpNAc, as a common core, and the smallest oligomannosyl core of the sugar chains from ovalbumin is alpha-D-Manp-(1----3)-alpha-D-Manp-(1----6)-[alpha-D-Manp -(1----3)]-beta-D- Manp-(1----4)-GlcpNAc-(1----4)-GlcpNAc. By methanolysis followed by N-acetylation, sialyl oligosaccharides, free from sulfated oligosaccharides, were recovered quantitatively from the acidic fractions of ovalbumin and ovomucoid. Methylation analysis of these sialyloligosaccharide mixtures, before and after sialidase digestion, showed that all sialic acid of both glycoproteins occurs as a alpha-Sia-(2----3)-D-Galp group.

Partial characterization of the oligosaccharides of mouse thymocyte Thy-1 glycoprotein

Four glycopeptides (I, IIA, IIB, III) with different oligosaccharide structures were isolated from purified mouse thymocyte Thy-1 glycoprotein. The glycoprotein was digested with Pronase, and the glycopeptide fraction was isolated by gel filtration and acetylated with [3H]acetic anhydride. The different glycan structures were separated by affinity chromatography on concanavalin A-Sepharose 4B and lentil lectin-Sepharose 4B. Size determinations of intact and exoglycosidase- and endoglycosidase-digested glycopeptides were performed by gel filtration on Bio-Gel P-6, calibrated with glycopeptides of known structure. On the basis of these experiments and on the behaviour of the glycopeptides on the lectin columns, the following structures of the oligosaccharide chains were proposed: I, triantennary 'complex-type' with terminal fucose; IIA, biantennary 'complex-type' without fucose; IIB, biantennary 'complex-type' with fucose; III, a mixture of 'high-mannose' chains containing either five or six mannose residues (approx. 50% of each). Amino acid analysis of the glycopeptides showed that the predominant oligosaccharide at glycosylation-site Asn-23 was of 'high-mannose' type, whereas the other two sites (Asn-75 and Asn-99) were glycosylated with 'complex-type' chains. Both these sites were shown to be variably glycosylated. The major glycans linked to Asn-75 were of structures I and IIB, whereas all three 'complex-type' chains were represented at Asn-99. The results presented explain the previously reported carbohydrate heterogeneity of thymocyte Thy-1 glycoprotein.

Structural studies on the major oligosaccharides in a variant surface glycoprotein of Trypanosoma congolense

The carbohydrate moieties in the four isotypes of a variant surface glycoprotein from Trypanosoma congolense were analyzed. All variant surface glycoprotein isotypes were found to contain up to 15% by weight of D-galactose, D-mannose, and N-acetyl-D-glucosamine in molar ratios approaching 1:3.2:3.9 (isotypes I-III) or 1:2.4:2.4 (isotype IV); in addition, the presence of sialic acid could be demonstrated. After metabolic labelling with D-[6-3H]glucosamine, the four isoglycoproteins were successively digested with pronase and with endo-beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase H. Up to two thirds of the oligosaccharides were thus liberated and were separated by gel filtration, and by high performance liquid chromatography. Using methylation, gas chromatography, mass spectrometry and digestion with alpha-mannosidase, they were shown to be mainly typical oligomannosidic oligosaccharides of size classes Man5GlcNAc to Man9GlcNAc. The residual glycans were liberated by hydrazinolysis, and were fractionated by serotonin affinity chromatography. After separation by gel filtration, the neutral oligosaccharides from isotype I were subjected to methylation analysis and successive exoglycosidase digestions. They were found to be biantennary oligosaccharides of the N-acetyllactosaminic type: (GalGlcNAc)2Man3GlcNAc1-2. Only about 30% of the sialylated glycans were susceptible to neuraminidases. The T. congolense variant surface glycoprotein studied here contains mainly high mannose and biantennary 'complex' oligosaccharides as found in many other eukaryotic glycoproteins, except that they seem to carry unusually substituted/linked sialic acid residues.

Glycoproteins: their structure, biosynthesis and possible clinical implications

Glycoproteins carrying asparagine-linked N-glycosyl oligosaccharides have many diverse biological functions. The role of the carbohydrate in these functions is often obscure. However, there is evidence that carbohydrate is involved in stabilization of glycoproteins during passage from the rough endoplasmic reticulum to the cell surface, and in recognition phenomena such as receptor-mediated endocytosis, routing of lysosomal hydrolases to the lysosomes, and the spread of cancer cells to secondary sites. The cell surface carbohydrate of some transformed cell lines tends to be more highly branched than that of the non-transformed controls. The control of branching during synthesis of N-glycosyl oligosaccharides resides in the N-acetylglucosaminyltransferases (GlcNAc-transferases) which initiate these branches. There must be at least seven such GlcNAc-transferases to account for the diversity of structures that have been observed. Our laboratory has developed assays for four of these enzymes. Substrate specificity studies on these enzymes have shed light on some of the control mechanisms involved in the synthesis of highly branched structures. Alterations in these control mechanisms may be important in the pathogenesis of cancer and other disease.

Swainsonine inhibits macrophage receptor-mediated uptake and degradation of a mannosyl-oligosaccharide

Rat pulmonary macrophages were incubated in the presence of a radiolabeled mannosyl-oligosaccharide obtained from ovalbumin. Receptor-mediated endocytosis and degradation of this ligand by the cells was followed in the presence or absence of swainsonine, an inhibitor of alpha-mannosidases. The results indicated that at higher concentrations (greater than 1 microgram/ml) of swainsonine, both the internalization and degradation of the radiolabeled ligand were inhibited. At a concentration of 0.1 microgram/ml of swainsonine, only the degradation was inhibited while the uptake was unaltered. The degradation of the oligosaccharide was blocked due to the inhibition of lysosomal alpha-mannosidase. However, the inhibition of lysosomal alpha-mannosidase was reversible upon withdrawal of swainsonine.

The use of two-dimensional correlated spectroscopy to obtain new assignments in the high-resolution 1H nuclear magnetic resonance spectrum of the biantennary complex oligosaccharide isolated from human serum transferrin by hydrazinolysis

The asialo biantennary complex type oligosaccharide from human serum transferrin was isolated by hydrazinolysis, a method which results in the quantitative release of the intact oligosaccharide free of all amino acids. The 1H-NMR chemical shifts of the previously assigned anomeric and H-2 protons from the peripheral residues of the glycopeptide are identical to the corresponding values for the reduced oligosaccharide. The chemical shift of GlcNAc-1 H-1 proton in the reduced oligosaccharide was assigned by selective deuteration. Proton J connectivities were determined using two-dimensional 1H-1H correlated high resolution NMR spectroscopy. Twelve new assignments were made within the central envelope of the NMR spectrum and a further six were tentatively proposed. The ability to assign proton resonances in this way should allow further conformational studies of the oligosaccharide using nuclear Overhauser effects between the relevant assigned protons on different saccharide residues (Homans, S.W., Dwek, R.A., Fernandes, D.L. and Rademacher, T.W. (1982) FEBS Lett. 150, 503-506).

Comparative rates of transfer of N-acetylneuraminic acid to acceptors bearing one or more Gal(beta 1-4)GlcNAc terminus by the Gal(beta 1-4)GlcNAc(NeuAc-Gal) (alpha 2-6)-sialyltransferase from embryonic chicken liver. Utilization of oligosaccharides as acceptors in sialyltransferase assays

Using a number of branched and unbranched oligosaccharides, glycoproteins and artificial glycoproteins bearing Gal(beta 1-4)GlcNAc-R termini as acceptors (where R represents H, oligosaccharide, oligosaccharide-protein or fatty acid-protein), the comparative rates of transfer of NeuAc by the Gal(beta 1-4)GlcNAc(NeuAc-Gal) (alpha 2-6)-sialyltransferase of embryonic chicken liver were determined. Acceptor substrates were utilized at levels approximating physiological, near the Km value of the best acceptor, desialylated alpha 1 acid glycoprotein. The sialyltransferase has a marked preference for multi-branched acceptors. From the specificity data, it is concluded that the enzyme binds at least two Gal(beta 1-4)GlcNAc termini of an acceptor molecule, and that the relative orientation of the branches is an important factor determining the rate of catalysis by the enzyme. The use of oligosaccharides as acceptors to study sialyltransferase catalyses is emphasized. Results are discussed in the context of the mode of assembly of sialoside termini of known glycoprotein structures in vivo.

The enzymatic cleavage of rhodopsin by the retinal pigment epithelium. II. The carbohydrate composition of the glycopeptide cleavage product

The carbohydrate groups present in the glycopeptide cleaved from purified [3H]-GlcNAc-rhodopsin by an enzyme from the retinal pigment epithelium were analyzed in terms of the size of the oligosaccharide chains, the sequence of the sugars and their anomeric linkages. These analyses were performed also on intact rhodopsin and an enzyme control. The oligosaccharides were cleaved from the peptide by means of hydrazinolysis. After reduction with NaB3H4, the oligosaccharides, purified by paper electrophoretic and paper chromatographic means, were digested sequentially with exoglycosidases, and the resultant digestion products examined by high-resolution gel filtration on Bio-Gel P-4 (-400). The size, sequence and anomeric configuration of the constituents of the oligosaccharides present in the glycopeptide were essentially identical to those present in intact purified rhodopsin, indicating the retention by the glycopeptide of the sugar chains of the intact molecule.

Carbohydrates of influenza virus hemagglutinin: structures of the whole neutral sugar chains

The carbohydrates of BHA, a solubilized hemagglutinin of influenza virus by bromelain digestion, were quantitatively released as oligosaccharides by hydrazinolysis. The oligosaccharide mixture was separated into a neutral and two acidic fractions by paper electrophoresis. Both acidic fractions were resistant to sialidase digestion but were slowly converted to the neutral fraction by incubation with sulfatases. The neutral fraction which comprised about 80% in molar ratio of total oligosaccharides was separated into 13 oligosaccharides by paper chromatography and by Con A-Sepharose column chromatography. Structural studies of these oligosaccharides by sequential exoglycosidase digestion and by methylation analysis revealed that BHA contains a series of high mannose type and bi-, tri-, and tetraantennary complex type sugar chains. Occurrence of Gal beta l leads to 3GlcNAc outer chain in two and bisectional N-acetylglucosamine in one of the biantennary sugar chains is an interesting characteristic of the sugar chains of BHA.