Genetic relationship between lysosomal and lamellar body-specific alpha-glucosidases in human lung

GAA deficiency disrupts distal airway cells in Pompe disease

Pompe disease is an autosomal recessive glycogen storage disease caused by mutations in the gene that encodes acid alpha-glucosidase (GAA)-an enzyme responsible for hydrolyzing lysosomal glycogen. GAA deficiency results in systemic lysosomal glycogen accumulation and cellular disruption. Glycogen accumulation in skeletal muscles, motor neurons, and airway smooth muscle cells is known to contribute to respiratory insufficiency in Pompe disease. However, the impact of GAA deficiency on the distal alveolar type 1 and type 2 cells (AT1 and AT2) has not been evaluated. AT1 cells rely on lysosomes for cellular homeostasis so that they can maintain a thin barrier for gas exchange, whereas AT2 cells depend on lysosome-like structures (lamellar bodies) for surfactant production. Using a mouse model of Pompe disease, the Gaa-/- mouse, we investigated the consequences of GAA deficiency on AT1 and AT2 cells using histology, pulmonary function and mechanics, and transcriptional analysis. Histological analysis revealed increased accumulation of lysosomal-associated membrane protein 1 (LAMP1) in the Gaa-/- mice lungs. Furthermore, ultrastructural examination showed extensive intracytoplasmic vacuoles enlargement and lamellar body engorgement. Respiratory dysfunction was confirmed using whole body plethysmography and forced oscillometry. Finally, transcriptomic analysis demonstrated dysregulation of surfactant proteins in AT2 cells, specifically reduced levels of surfactant protein D in the Gaa-/- mice. We conclude that GAA enzyme deficiency leads to glycogen accumulation in the distal airway cells that disrupts surfactant homeostasis and contributes to respiratory impairments in Pompe disease.NEW & NOTEWORTHY This research highlights the impact of Pompe disease on distal airway cells. Prior to this work, respiratory insufficiency in Pompe disease was classically attributed to pathology in respiratory muscles and motor neurons. Using the Pompe mouse model, we note significant pathology in alveolar type 1 and 2 cells with reductions in surfactant protein D and disrupted surfactant homeostasis. These novel findings highlight the potential contributions of alveolar pathology to respiratory insufficiency in Pompe disease.

Purification and characterization of an alpha-glucosidase from the hepatopancreas of the shrimp Penaeus japonicus (Crustacea: decapoda)

1. The alpha-glucosidase purified from the hepatopancreas of Penaeus japonicus is not membrane-bound and labile to heating at 65 degree C for 10 min. 2. The specific activity of the purified enzyme is 223 units/mg of protein. After polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis under denaturing conditions, the purified alpha-glucosidase from shrimp was found to consist of monomers of M(r) 105,000. 3.The alpha-glucosidase from shrimp has an isoelectric point (pI) of 3.8 and becomes more alkaline after the removal of sialic acid and phosphoric acid. 4.The shrimp enzyme has the pH optimum at 5.0 and its K(m) was 125 micrometer with 4-methylumbelliferyl-alpha-D-glucoside as substrate.

Developmental expression of glycogenolytic enzymes in rabbit tissues: possible relationship to fetal lung maturation

Glycogen can be degraded in mammalian tissues by one of three isozymes of glycogen phosphorylase, termed muscle (M), liver (L) and brain (B) after the tissues in which they are preferentially expressed in adult animals, or by members of the family of alpha-glucosidases. In the current study, we have examined the developmental expression of these enzymes and their respective mRNAs in rabbit tissues, with particular emphasis on the developing lung, a tissue in which glycogen serves as an important source of carbon for surfactant phospholipid biosynthesis. Native gel activity assays and RNA blot hybridization analysis revealed that the B isoform of glycogen phosphorylase predominates in fetal and adult lung tissues, accompanied by a low level of expression of the M isoform. Total B and M phosphorylase activities increased during fetal lung development, with a peak at day 28 of gestation, then decreased to the adult level at term. This peak in activity coincided with the peak period of glycogen degradation in developing lung. While the increase in M isozyme activity was correlated with an increase in the level of its mRNA, B isoform mRNA showed no significant alteration during development, suggesting that the increase in B isoform activity is determined by a posttranscriptional mechanism. Analysis of phosphorylase mRNA levels in developing liver, skeletal muscle, brain and heart revealed a diverse expression pattern. The L isozyme mRNA was predominant at all time points in liver, the M isozyme was predominant at all time points in muscle, the B isozyme was predominant at all time points in brain, and heart contained a mixture of B and M mRNA in roughly equal ratios at all time points. Thus, our studies of phosphorylase mRNA in the rabbit provide no evidence for general predominance of the B isozyme in fetal tissues, or for isozyme 'switching' from the B to the L or M forms during development, as has been suggested by others. In addition to the increase in phosphorylase activity, acid, but not neutral alpha-glucosidase activity was found to increase significantly during fetal lung development, again with a peak at day 28 of gestation. Interestingly, RNA blot hybridization analysis with a probe for lysosomal alpha-glucosidase revealed no change in the level of expression of its 4 kb transcript in developing lung. Instead, we observed induction of a structurally related mRNA of 7.4 kb that peaked at day 28 of gestation. Hybridization with a sucrase/isomaltase-specific oligonucleotide excluded the possibility that the 7.4 kb transcript encodes this protein.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

An improved procedure for the isolation of lamellar bodies from human lung. Lamellar bodies free of lysosomes contain a spectrum of lysosomal-type hydrolases

We have recently shown that lamellar body fractions purified from human lung contain a distinct acid alpha-glucosidase distinguishable from lysosomal acid alpha-glucosidase in that it does not cross-react with antibodies raised against the lysosomal enzyme and does not bind to concanavalin A (De Vries, A.C.J., Schram, A.W., Tager, J.M., Batenburg, J.J. and Van Golde, L.M.G. (1985) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 837, 230-238). In order to study the relationship between the non-concanavalin A-binding alpha-glucosidase and lamellar bodies more closely a method was developed for the further purification of the organelles. A purified lamellar body preparation isolated from human lung homogenate by discontinuous sucrose density centrifugation was subjected to gel filtration with Sepharose 4B followed by Percoll density gradient centrifugation, which yielded a lamellar body preparation with a phospholipid phosphorus/protein ratio of 12.57 +/- 0.38 (mumol/mg) (n = 3) as compared to a ratio of 3.34 +/- 0.16 (mumol/mg) (n = 3) in the sucrose density gradient preparation. Concomitantly there was a 3.3 +/- 0.1 (n = 3)-fold enrichment in the content of total acid alpha-glucosidase and a 3.2 +/- 0.1 (n = 3) -fold enrichment of non-concanavalin A-binding acid alpha-glucosidase. The new purification method removes adhering proteins without changing the phospholipid composition. During the successive purification steps the concanavalin A-sensitive and -insensitive alpha-glucosidases remained fully lamellar body fraction associated. Differences between a lysosome-enriched fraction and a lamellar body preparation at varying stages of purification with respect to the ratio between soluble acid hydrolases and the membrane-associated lysosomal enzyme glucocerebrosidase indicate that the purified lamellar bodies were not contaminated with lysosomes. The absence of lysosomes in the purified lamellar body fraction was confirmed by experiments with the weak base glycyl-L-phenylalanine-beta-naphthylamide, which is an artificial substrate for the lysosomal enzyme cathepsin C and brings about lysis of lysosomes. Morphological examination by electron microscopy endorses the absence of contaminating vesicles and organelles and showed a structural integrity of the lamellar bodies in the final preparation. The improved isolation procedure strongly suggests that the concanavalin A-insensitive acid alpha-glucosidase is endogenous to lamellar bodies and supports our earlier idea that it can be used as a lamellar body-specific marker enzyme. In addition, the experiments show that lamellar bodies free of lysosomes contain a spectrum of lysosomal-type enzymes.