Structural studies on heparins with unusually high N-acetylglucosamine contents

Perspective on computational simulations of glycosaminoglycans

Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) represent a formidable frontier for chemists, biochemists, biologists, medicinal chemists and drug delivery specialists because of massive structural complexity. GAGs are arguably the most complex, natural linear biopolymers with theoretical diversity orders of magnitude higher than proteins and nucleic acids. Yet, this diversity remains generally untapped. Computational approaches offer major routes to understand GAG structure and dynamics so as to enable novel applications of these biopolymers. In fact, computational algorithms, softwares, online tools and techniques have reached a level of sophistication that help understand atomistic details of conformational variation and protein recognition of individual GAG sequences. This review describes current approaches and challenges in computational study of GAGs. It presents a history of major findings since the earliest mention of GAGs (the 1960s), the development of parameters and force fields specific for GAGs, and the application of these tools in understanding GAG structure-function relationship. This review also presents a section on how to perform simulation of GAGs, which is directed toward researchers interested in entering this promising field with potential to impact therapy.

Biosynthesis of glycosaminoglycans and proteoglycans by the lymph node

Previous studies of hyaluronan uptake and catabolism by lymph nodes indicated that the nodes might also add some HA of low molecular weight to the unabsorbed fraction that passes through from afferent to efferent lymph vessels. The ability of lymph nodes to synthesise HA and proteoglycans was therefore examined (i) by perfusion of [(3)H] acetate through an afferent lymph vessel in vivo, and recovery of labeled products from the efferent lymph vessel and from the node after perfusion; and (ii) by tissue culture of lymph nodes with [(3)H] acetate. Perfusion of lymph nodes with [(3)H] acetate in situ yielded: (a), in outflowing lymph, small amounts of chondroitin/dermatan sulfate within the first hour which continued to be produced for up to 24 h; heparin in the second hour and HA in the third. In the nodes removed 17 to 19 h later, equal amounts of hyaluronan and chondroitin/dermatan sulfate and heparan sulfate proteoglycans were detected. In the tissue culture of lymph nodes: (1) HA, heparin and proteoglycans of heparan sulfate and chondroitin/dermatan sulfate were released into the medium but in the cell extract only heparan sulfate proteoglycan was detected; and (ii) molecular weight of the released hyaluronan ranged widely but was mostly less than 4-5x10(5)D; heparan sulfate proteoglycan was 2.8x10(4) to 9.4x10(5)D; heparin 7.9x10(4)D and chondroitin sulfate 1.3x10(4)D, suggesting that the chondrotin sulfate were released from their proteoglycans core by enzymic degradation. It is concluded that lymph nodes can release HA, heparin, heparan sulfate and chondroitin/dermatan sulfate proteoglycans into efferent lymph but the amount of hyaluronan is likely to be small without immune or other stimulation and its molecular weight is lower than in other tissues.

Partial purification and characterization of detergent-solubilized N-sulfotransferase activity associated with calf brain microsomes

Calf brain 3'-phosphoadenosine 5'-phosphosulfate (PAPS):proteoheparan sulfate (PHS) N-sulfotransferase activity is solubilized by extracting salt-washed microsomes with 1% Cutscum. A protocol is described for the partial purification of the sulfotransferase activity utilizing: (1) diethylaminoethyl (DEAE)-Sephacel, (2) heparin-Sepharose CL-6B, and (3) 3',5'-ADP-agarose as chromatographic supports. Sulfotransferase activity was followed by using 3'-phosphoadenosine 5'-phospho[35S]sulfate and endogenous acceptors in heat-inactivated microsomes as exogenous substrates. Two chromatographically distinct fractions (ST1 and ST2) of sulfotransferase activity are resolved on DEAE-Sephacel. Both sulfotransferase activities have been partially purified and characterized. An apparent purification of the two N-sulfotransferase fractions of 22- to 29-fold, relative to the microsomal activity, is achieved by this procedure. Since ST1 appears to represent approximately 24% of the total microsomal activity, a purification of 89-fold has been estimated for this fraction. Neither sulfotransferase activity was stimulated by MnCl2, MgCl2, or CaCl2 added at 10 mM, nor inhibited by the presence of 10 mM EDTA. ST1 and ST2 are optimally active at pH 7.5-8. Apparent Km values for PAPS of 2.3 microM and 0.9 microM have been determined for ST1 and ST2, respectively. ST1 exhibits N-sulfotransferase activity primarily and is inhibited by phosphatidylserine whereas the ST2 fraction contains a mixture of N- and O-sulfotransferase activity and is stimulated by phosphatidylserine, phosphatidylcholine, and lysophosphatidylcholine. The detection of two chromatographically distinct sulfotransferase activities raises the possibility that N-sulfation of proteoheparan sulfates could be catalyzed by more than one enzyme, and that N-sulfation and O-sulfation of proteoglycans are catalyzed by separate enzymes in nervous tissue.

Structural analysis of heparin by methylation and g.l.c.-m.s.: preliminary results

Heparin is a complex mixture of polysaccharides differing in biological activity and structure, and attempts to relate this activity to structure have suffered, owing to a lack of sufficiently sensitive and specific analytical methods. Application of methylation analysis to determination of the structure of heparin is described. Carboxyl-reduced heparin was converted into its pyridinium salt, this was dissolved in Me2SO, and free OH and NH groups were methylated with dimethylsulfinyl anion. Sulfate groups were removed by solvolysis, and after dialysis, the polymer was acetylated and depolymerized by acetolysis. The resulting monosaccharides were converted into alditol acetates, which were separated by capillary, gas-liquid chromatography, and identified by both electron impact and chemical ionization mass spectrometry. Seventeen different monosaccharides were identified in the hydrolyzate. All of the expected internal hexosaminyl and glycosyluronic residues were identified. Although several sugars were identified as nonreducing termini, only a hexosamine 6-sulfate was identified as a reducing-terminus sugar. The results indicate that methylation analysis of heparins and other complex, sulfated glycosaminoglycans is feasible.

Structural features and some binding properties of proteoheparan sulfate enzymatically labeled by calf brain microsomes

Previous studies established that brain microsomes catalyze the transfer of [35S]sulfate from 3'-phosphoadenosine 5'-phospho[35S]sulfate to an O-linked oligosaccharide chain of a membrane glycoprotein and sulfamino groups of a membrane-associated proteoheparan sulfate (R. R. Miller and C. J. Waechter (1979) Arch. Biochem. Biophys. 198, 31-41). A large fraction of the proteoheparan [35S]sulfate can be released by treating the enzymatically labeled membranes from calf brain with 1 M NaCl. The salt-extracted 35S-labeled proteoglycan has been partially purified by a combination of ion-exchange and gel filtration chromatography. Based on chromatographic analyses, the 35S-labeled proteoglycan labeled in vitro is proposed to be a family of proteoheparan [35S]sulfates having an average molecular weight estimated to be 55,000. Variation in the length of the 35S-labeled polysaccharide chains partially accounts for the differences in molecular size of the proteoheparan [35S]sulfates. Binding studies reveal that the intact proteoheparan [35S]sulfates, as well as the free 35S-labeled polysaccharides released by mild alkali treatment, rapidly reassociate with calf brain membrane preparations. The association with calf brain membranes is saturable and reversible. Consistent with the binding being a specific interaction, only iduronic acid-containing glycosaminoglycans inhibit the association of the 35S-labeled proteoglycan with calf brain membranes and facilitate the disassociation. Neither the binding of the 35S-labeled proteoglycan to membranes nor the displacement was affected by hyaluronic acid, chondroitin 4-sulfate, or chondroitin 6-sulfate. The binding of the enzymatically labeled proteoheparan sulfate is reduced by preincubating membranes with either trypsin or chymotrypsin, but not with neuraminidase or phospholipase D. These results suggest that at least one class of proteoheparan sulfates could be specifically bound to one or more brain membrane proteins. The results also suggest a role for iduronosyl residues, and perhaps the stereochemical relationship of the carboxyl group to the O-sulfate moiety at C-2, in the recognition process.

Inhibition of delayed-type hypersensitivity by heparin depleted of anticoagulant activity

The intravenous or intraperitoneal injection of heparin fractions depleted of anticoagulant activity (HFDA) into mice, either at the time of immunization or challenge, inhibited hapten-specific delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) reactions. The loss was not due to functional elimination of sensitized lymphocytes, since mice sensitized with the contactant and then treated with HFDA retained their ability to transfer reactivity into normal syngeneic recipients. In contrast, lymphocytes from sensitized mice were unable to produce DTH reactivity in recipient mice pretreated with HFDA. The intravenous injection of HFDA resulted in a rapid, but transient increase in the number of circulating leukocytes. The intravenous injection of HFDA also reduced the footpad swelling that resulted from a local injection of concanavalin A. It is postulated that HFDA exercise their inhibitory effects on the DTH response by interfering with the migration of cells into the challenge site.

Chromatography on DEAE-cellulose microcolumns: a quantitative method for the fractionation of small quantities of glycosaminoglycans

A simple, sensitive, and efficient method is described for qualitative and quantitative determination of glycosaminoglycans (GAG) synthesized by embryonic mouse teeth. After release from proteoglycan aggregates by enzymatic treatment, a mixture of different GAG was absorbed on a DEAE-cellulose microcolumn (Whatman DE-52 microgranular) at low salt concentration. The different types of GAG were eluted by stepwise increases in the concentration of NaCl. Glycopeptides, which generally contaminate the extract, can be completely removed prior to the elution of GAG. The eluate fractions were analyzed by rechromatography on the same column, using gradient elution. The stepwise elution is suitable for analysis as well as preparation of labeled GAG, the supply of which is limited in amount. The scale of chromatography can easily be stepped up. Quantitative analysis of GAG from embryonic mouse teeth is presented to demonstrate the usefulness of this method.

Hydrophobic-interaction chromatography of glycosaminoglycuronans: the contribution of N-acetyl groups in heparin and heparan sulfate to the affinity for hydrophobic gels, and variety of molecular species in beef-kidney heparan sulfate

Contribution of N-acetyl groups in heparin and heparan sulfate to their affinity for hydrophobic gels was examined by use of a series of semi-synthetic, N-acetylated, hog-intestinal heparins, a whale-intestinal heparin, and a beef-kidney heparan sulfate. Chromatography on Phenyl-Sepharose CL-4B in 3.8-1.0M ammonium sulfate-10mM hydrochloric acid indicated that an increasing N-acetyl content, which is correlated to a decreasing N-sulfate content, results in a marked increase in the affinity for the gels. The variety of molecular species in beef-kidney heparan sulfate, previously fractionated by conventional chromatographic procedures, was demonstrated by separating further, by hydrophobic-interaction chromatography, the polysaccharide into several fractions composed of molecular species distinctly different in N-acetyl and sulfate content, and in molecular size.

In vitro synthesis of proteoglycans associated with medullary bone in Japanese quail

A short-term incubation system was used to study proteoglycan synthesis during the early stages of medullary bone formation in estrogen-treated male Japanese quail. The proteoglycans were separated by chromatography on a DEAE Bio-Gel A column eluted with a 400-ml 0-1 M NaCl gradient. The profile from uninjected control birds showed a single peak, whereas profiles from estrogen-treated birds showed development of another peak. Incorporation of [35S]sulfate into the estrogen-induced proteoglycan increased most dramatically between 25 and 37 h after hormone treatment. The estrogen-induced proteoglycan has a Kav = 0.65 on Sepharose CL-4B, an average buoyant density of 1.50 g/ml, and contains keratan sulfate as its constituent glycosaminoglycan. The second proteoglycan has a Kav = 0.52 on Sepharose CL-4B, an average buoyant density of greater than or equal to 1.7 g/ml, and has chondroitin sulfate as it major glycosaminoglycan. It may also contain some heparin or heparan sulfate. The results support the usefulness of the incubation system for studying the dynamics of bone matrix production.

Glycosaminoglycans in embryonic mouse teeth and the dissociated dental constituents

The nature, amounts and distribution of glycosaminoglycans (GAG) before and during odontoblast terminal differentiation were studied. GAG have been isolated from intact mouse tooth germs and from dissociated dental epithelia and dental papillae after labeling with [3H]glucosamine or 35SO2-(4) asd precursor. The kinds and relative amounts of 3H-labeled GAG were analyzed by chromatography on a DEAE-cellulose column and cellulose thin-layer sheets. The amounts of individual GAG relative to total GAG were determined from the elution profiles, whereas their nature was identified by the selective removal of chromatographic peaks after enzymatic or chemical degradation. We found hyaluronate and probably a minute quantity of heparan sulfate in the dental epithelium, while hyaluronate, heparan sulfate, and chondroitin sulfate were the main types of GAG in the dental papilla. The chondroitin sulfate recovered was further fractionated by cellulose thin-layer chromatography into two isomers, namely chondroitin-2-sulfate (the major component) and chondroitin-6-sulfate. Changes in the elution profile from DEAE-cellulose chromatography of tooth GAG extracted from different developmental stages suggest that modifications of GAG occur during odontogenesis. Alcian blue staining localized large amounts of hyaluronate and sulfated GAG along the epithelio-mesenchymal junction. Tissue specificity and changing patterns of GAG were demonstrated during odontogenesis.

Biosynthesis of cell surface sulfated glycoproteins by cultured vascular endothelial cells

Cultured vascular endothelial cells incorporate 35SO4 into a class of oligosaccharides which are N-glycosidically linked to cell-surface or extracellular proteins. This type of sulfated oligosaccharide was not synthesized by smooth muscle cell cultures and may represent sulfation of vascular tissue glycoproteins which are unique to endothelial cells. These endothelial cell 35S-labeled oligosaccharides are not released from the polypeptides under alkaline conditions that cleave O-glycosidically linked chains. The incorporation of both [3H]hexosamine and 35SO4 into these oligosaccharides is inhibited by tunicamycin, an antibiotic which inhibits protein N-glycosylation. 35S-Labeled oligosaccharides, isolated as glycopeptides, were resistant to a variety of chemical and enzymatic treatments which degraded vascular cell sulfated glycosaminoglycans but appear to contain terminal sialic acid residues. Endothelial cell sulfated oligosaccharide chains could also be distinguished from sulfated glycosaminoglycans by the apparent size and charge. Endothelial cells released or secreted 35S-labeled glycoproteins into the culture medium. These soluble 35S-labeled glycoproteins were partially purified by DEAE-cellulose chromatography and separated from the 35S-labeled proteoglycans, which are also released into the medium. The major 35S-labeled glycoproteins released from the cells had apparent molecular weights of 24 000--66 000. The cell-associated 35S-labeled glycoproteins, released with ethylenediaminetetraacetate or extracted with 0.5% octyl glucoside, were partially purified on DEAE-cellulose and had apparent molecular weights of 45 000--250 000.

Sulfated and nonsulfated glycosaminoglycans and glycopeptides are synthesized by kidney in vivo and incorporated into glomerular basement membranes

The biosynthesis of glycosaminoglycans (GAG) and glycopeptides was studied in rat kidney cortex, glomeruli, and isolated glomerular basement membranes (GBM). Rats were given four intraperitoneal injections of [(35)S]sulfate and [(3)H]glucosamine (over 10 hr) and sacrificed 14 hr after the last injection. Fractions of kidney glomeruli and purified GBM were prepared. The percent of the label incorporated into specific GAG or into glycopeptides was determined by selective degradative techniques in conjunction with gel filtration chromatography using the methods of Hart [Hart, G. W. (1976) J. Biol. Chem. 251, 6513-6521; Hart, G. W. (1978) Dev. Biol. 62, 78-98]. After digestion with Pronase and chromatography on Sephadex G-50, approximately 68% of the total (35)S radioactivity and 10-15% of the total (3)H radioactivity incorporated into cortex, glomeruli, or GBM was found in the GAG fraction, and the remainder ( approximately 32% of (35)S radioactivity and 85-90% of the (3)H radioactivity) was found in glycopeptide fractions. Treatment of GAG fractions isolated from the three sources (cortex, glomeruli, and GBM) with nitrous acid (which degrades heparan sulfates) indicated that the majority (85%, 65%, and 87%) of the (35)S radioactivity as well as the majority (60%, 50%, and 91%) of the (3)H radioactivity from all three sources was degraded by this treatment. When nitrous acid-resistant GAG from GBM were subjected to digestion with Streptomyces hyaluronidase (which degrades hyaluronic acid), approximately 6% of the (3)H-labeled material was sensitive to this treatment. The remaining (35)S- and (3)H-labeled GAG isolated from GBM were digested with chondroitinase ABC (which degrades chondroitin sulfates A and C and dermatan sulfate). Although the ratios of the types of GAG synthesized by all three sources were similar, in GBM the ratios of (35)S- to (3)H-labeled GAG and of (3)H-labeled glycopeptides to (3)H-labeled GAG were higher (2.5 times) than those found for glomeruli. The data demonstrate the synthesis of both sulfated and nonsulfated GAG by rat kidney cortex and glomeruli and their transport to and incorporation into the GBM. Heparan sulfate is the major GAG synthesized by glomeruli, but the glomeruli also synthesize smaller amounts of hyaluronic acid and chondroitin sulfates, which are in part incorporated into GBM. In addition, the renal cortex and the glomeruli synthesize glycopeptides, some of which are sulfated, and incorporate them into GBM.

Glycosaminoglycans: structure and interaction

In the last few years, there has been considerable progress in the studies on glycosaminoglycans, a group of acidic polysaccharides present in the intercellular matrix of connective tissue. X-ray diffraction studies have indicated that these polymers can exist in the condensed phase in some helical form. Chiroptical and hydrodynamic measurements have provided significant information regarding the molecular conformation in solution and other physicochemical properties of the polymers. Studies related to the interaction properties of glycosaminoglycans with polypeptides, metal ions, and other molecules are numerous. This review covers mainly the results and their interpretations of both published and as yet unpublished material of the 1970s, but certain previous data are also included. A present-day concept regarding the structure and interaction properties of these molecules on the basis of various physicochemical measurements is presented. The biosynthesis and metabolism of glycosaminoglycans, and the structure of proteoglycans and glycoproteins, are not discussed.

Molecular weight determination of commercial heparin sodium USP and its sterile solutions

A liquid chromatographic assay for the characterization of heparin sodium USP, and heparin sterile solutions was developed. The method employs size exclusion chromatography and computer-based data collection and manipulation. An examination of commercially available heparin showed only minor differences between the heparins extracted from beef lung and porcine intestinal mucosa. The molecular weight averages of the material and its sterile solutions were 9000-12,000 daltons. A correlation was observed between average molecular weight and anticoagulant activity for the heparin sodium samples examined.

Isolation and characterization of glycosaminoglycans from the Furth murine mastocytoma

New methods for isolation and fractionation by partition are described and compared with existing techniques. Substantially purer products were isolated by partition as compared to precipitation with hexadecylpyridinium chloride. The glycosaminoglycans isolated fron Furth murine mastocytoma tumor were found to consist of 78-80% heparin, 12-13% chondroitin sulfate, and 8-9% hyaluronate. Dermatan sulfate was not detected. Two heparin-like glycosaminoglycans could be isolated by partition fractionation in the phase system 1-butanol/aqueous NaCl containing hexadecylpyridinium chloride. The composition of one was typical of heparins. However, the other glycosaminoglycan contained only 0.47 moles N-sulfate/mole uronate, but had electrophoretic and partition properties characteristic of heparin.

Structural characteristics of heparan sulfates with varying sulfate contents

Structural properties of heparan sulfate preparations from hog mucosa and beef lung sources were obtained by application of Smith degradation and nitrous acid reactions. Products formed by these reactions indicated that most of the iduronic acid present in these mucopolysaccharides is ester sulfated, whereas N-sulfated glucosamine residues are ester sulfated much less frequently. Repeating units with sulfated iduronic acid found to occur almost entirely in single sequences. Futhermore, the iduronic acid moieties may be bound to either N-acetylated or N-sulfated glucosamine units, with these occuring at either end of the uronic acid unit.