N-glycosylation of recombinant human fucosyltransferase III is required for its in vivo folding in mammalian and insect cells

Glycosyltransferase 8 domain-containing protein 1 (GLT8D1) is a UDP-dependent galactosyltransferase

Glycosyltransferases (GTs) are enzymes that catalyze the formation of glycosidic bonds and hundreds of GTs have been identified so far in humans. Glycosyltransferase 8 domain-containing protein 1 (GLT8D1) has been associated with central nervous system diseases and cancer. However, evidence on its enzymatic properties, including its substrates, has been scarcely described. In this paper, we have produced and purified recombinant secretory GLT8D1. The enzyme was found to be N-glycosylated. Differential scanning fluorimetry was employed to analyze the stabilization of GLT8D1 by Mn2+ and nucleotides, revealing UDP as the most stabilizing nucleotide scaffold. GLT8D1 displayed glycosyltransferase activity from UDP-galactose onto N-acetylgalactosamine but with a low efficiency. Modeling of the structure revealed similarities with other GT-A fold enzymes in CAZy family GT8 and glycosyltransferases in other families with galactosyl-, glucosyl-, and xylosyltransferase activities, each with retaining catalytic mechanisms. Our study provides novel structural and functional insights into the properties of GLT8D1 with implications in pathological processes.

How glycosylation affects glycosylation: the role of N-glycans in glycosyltransferase activity

N-glycosylation is one of the most important posttranslational modifications of proteins. It plays important roles in the biogenesis and functions of proteins by influencing their folding, intracellular localization, stability and solubility. N-glycans are synthesized by glycosyltransferases, a complex group of ubiquitous enzymes that occur in most kingdoms of life. A growing body of evidence shows that N-glycans may influence processing and functions of glycosyltransferases, including their secretion, stability and substrate/acceptor affinity. Changes in these properties may have a profound impact on glycosyltransferase activity. Indeed, some glycosyltransferases have to be glycosylated themselves for full activity. N-glycans and glycosyltransferases play roles in the pathogenesis of many diseases (including cancers), so studies on glycosyltransferases may contribute to the development of new therapy methods and novel glycoengineered enzymes with improved properties. In this review, we focus on the role of N-glycosylation in the activity of glycosyltransferases and attempt to summarize all available data about this phenomenon.

Sialylation potentials of the silkworm, Bombyx mori; B. mori possesses an active α2,6-sialyltransferase

N-Glycosylation is an important post-translational modification in most secreted and membrane-bound proteins in eukaryotic cells. However, the insect N-glycosylation pathway and the potentials contributing to the N-glycan synthesis are still unclear because most of the studies on these subjects have focused on mammals and plants. Here, we identified Bombyx mori sialyltransferase (BmST), which is a Golgi-localized glycosyltransferase and which can modify N-glycans. BmST was ubiquitously expressed in different organs and in various stages of development and localized at the Golgi. Biochemical analysis using Sf9-expressed BmST revealed that BmST encoded α2,6-sialyltransferase and transferred N-acetylneuraminic acid (NeuAc) to the nonreducing terminus of Galβ1-R, but exhibited the highest activity toward GalNAcβ1,4-GlcNAc-R. Unlike human α2,6-sialyltransferase, BmST required the post-translational modification, especially N-glycosylation, for its full activity. N-Glycoprotein analysis of B. mori fifth instar larvae revealed that high-mannose-type structure was predominant and GlcNAc-linked and fucosylated structures were observed but endogenous galactosyl-, N-acetylgalactosaminyl- and sialyl-N-glycoproteins were undetectable under the standard analytical approach. These results indicate that B. mori genome encodes an α2,6-sialyltransferase, but further investigations of the sialylation potentials are necessary.

Arabidopsis ENDO2: its catalytic role and requirement of N-glycosylation for function

The Arabidopsis thaliana At1g68290 gene encoding an endonuclease was isolated and designated ENDO2, which was cloned into a binary vector to overexpress ENDO2 with a C-terminal 6 × His-tag in A. thaliana. Our Arabidopsis transgenic lines harboring 35SP::ENDO2 produced stable active enzyme with high yield. The protein was affinity purified from transgenic plants, and its identity was confirmed by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and automatic Edman degradation. ENDO2 enzyme digests RNA, ssDNA, and dsDNA, with a substrate preference for ssDNA and RNA. The activity toward ssDNA (361.7 U/mg) is greater than its dsDNase activity (14.1 U/mg) at neutral pH. ENDO2 effectively cleaves mismatch regions in heteroduplex DNA containing single base pair mismatches or insertion/deletion bases and can be applied to high-throughput detection of single base mutation. Our data also validated that the removal of sugar groups from ENDO2 strongly affects its enzymatic stability and activity.

Role of N-glycosylation of the SEA module of rodent Muc3 in posttranslational processing of its carboxy-terminal domain

A prominent feature of the rodent Muc3 SEA module is the precursor cleavage event that segregates the O-glycosylated N-terminal fragment and transmembrane domain into the noncovalently attached heterodimer. There are seven potential N-glycosylation sites that occur in a cluster in the SEA module of Muc3. However, it is unknown if these sites are modified or what the function of these N-glycans may be in the SEA module. Our data show that the proteolytic cleavage of the rodent Muc3 SEA module was partially prevented by treatment with tunicamycin, an inhibitor of N-glycosylation. Each single mutant of the seven N-glycosylation sites (N1A, N2A, N3A, N4A, N5A, N6A, and N7A) and multiple mutants, including double (N34A) and triple (N345A) mutants, and mutants with four (N3457A), five (N34567A), six (N134567A and N234567A), seven (N1234567A) mutations, confirmed that all seven of these potential sites are N-glycosylated simultaneously. The proteolytic cleavage of the SEA module was not affected when it lacked only one, two, or three N-glycans, but was partially inhibited when lacking four, five, and six N-glycans. In all, 2%, 48%, 85%, and 73% of the products from N3457A, N34567A, N134567A, and N234567A transfectants, respectively, remained uncleaved. The proteolytic cleavage was completely prevented in the N1234567A transfectant, which eliminated all seven N-glycans in the SEA module. The interaction of the heterodimer was independent of the N-glycans within the rodent Muc3 SEA module. Thus, the N-glycosylation pattern constituted a control point for the modulation of the proteolytic cleavage of the SEA module.

Functional role of N-glycosylation from ADAM10 in processing, localization and activity of the enzyme

A disintegrin and metalloprotease 10 (ADAM10) is a type I transmembrane glycoprotein with four potential N-glycosylation sites (N267, N278, N439 and N551), that cleaves several plasma membrane proteins. In this work, ADAM10 was found to contain high-mannose and complex-type glycans. Individual N-glycosylation site mutants S269A, T280A, S441A, T553A were constructed, and results indicated that all sites were occupied. T280A was found to accumulate in the endoplasmic reticulum as the non-processed precursor of the enzyme. Furthermore, it exhibited only residual levels of metalloprotease activity in vivo towards the L1 cell adhesion molecule, as well as in vitro, using a ProTNF-alpha peptide as substrate. S441A showed increased ADAM10 susceptibility to proteolysis. Mutation of N267, N439 and N551 did not completely abolish enzyme activity, however, reduced levels were found. ADAM10 is sorted into secretory vesicles, the exosomes. Here, a fraction of ADAM10 from exosomes was found to contain more processed N-linked glycans than the cellular enzyme. In conclusion, N-glycosylation is crucial for ADAM10 processing and resistance to proteolysis, and results suggest that it is required for full-enzyme activity.

Stable expression of an active soluble recombinant form of human fucosyltransferase IX in Spodoptera frugiperda Sf9 cells

A secretory form of human alpha3-fucosyltransferase IX (sFUT9) was overexpressed in Spodoptera frugiperda (Sf9) insect cells using the stable expression vector pIB/V5-His-TOPO and the signal sequence of human interleukin 2 for efficient secretion. sFUT9 was active and its three potential N-glycosylation sites were occupied. sFUT9 efficiently fucosylated the type II acceptors Galbeta4GlcNAC-R and Fucalpha2Galbeta4GlcNAc-R (R = (CH2)3NHCO(CH2)5-NH-biotin) but not the corresponding sialylated acceptor, and only very poorly the type I (Galbeta3GlcNAc-R) related acceptors. sFUT9 showed a clear preference for glycoproteins containing type II acceptors, with values of 121, 113 and 110 microU/million cell for asialofetuin, erythropoietin and asialoerythropoietin, respectively, values approximately 11-fold higher than those obtained for the small acceptors.

Biochemical, molecular characterization, and glycoproteomic analyses of alpha(1)-proteinase inhibitor products used for replacement therapy

BACKGROUND

Isoelectric focusing (IEF) of alpha(1)-proteinase inhibitor (A1PI) shows that commercial products and plasma have different glycoisoform band patterns. Those in Aralast (Grifols Biologicals) reflect an anodal shift of glycoisoforms, which has caused concern. The protein, including glycoproteomic analyses, and structural features of A1PI products were investigated by state-of-the-art techniques.

STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS

Batches from Aralast, Prolastin (Bayer), and Zemaira (Aventis Behring LLC) were analyzed by high-resolution IEF and high-performance size-exclusion chromatography (HP-SEC). Preparative separated isoforms from IEF were further purified by chromatography and subjected to mass spectrometry for sequence analyses, peptide mapping, and glycosylation analysis. Deamidation was quantified by enzymatic isoaspartate detection. Multiple sequence alignments and structural bioinformatics analyses were performed.

RESULTS

In HP-SEC, Prolastin had the highest aggregate content at approximately 30 percent. Isoforms from all products purified by high-resolution IEF were sequenced with an amino acid coverage of more than 98 percent. Deamidation of Asn116 and Asn314 in A1PI was to found to some extent in all products and confirmed quantitatively by enzymatic analysis. There were no signs of methionine oxidation. Cys232 was found to be cysteinylated in A1PI in Prolastin and Aralast as in plasma, but not in Zemaira. All products showed truncation of the C-terminal lysine. Intact A1PI concentrates contained mainly diantennary, disialylated and smaller amounts of triantennary, trisialylated N-glycans. The percentage of fucosylation was similar in all products. Site-specific glycan analysis revealed bands M6 contained only diantennary glycans, whereas the more acidic bands M4 and M2 also carried triantennary structures. The most acidic isoforms, M2 in Prolastin and Zemaira and M0 in Aralast, additionally exhibited tetraantennary N-glycans.

CONCLUSION

Protein chemical characterization of A1PI showed that all A1PI products to some extent differ from A1PI circulating in human plasma. Bioinformatic analysis indicated that removal of C-terminal Lys394 and cysteinylation of Cys232 are unlikely to affect structure and/or function of A1PI but cysteinylation may influence interaction between A1PI and its physiologic ligands. Aralast, Prolastin, and Zemaira contain the same set of N-glycans in the same ratios as those in normal human plasma A1PI. Tri- and tetraantennary structures are responsible for the partitioning into IEF isoforms, with the migration shift of Aralast not being due to any difference in the N-glycosylation, but to the partial loss of the C-terminal lysine.

N-linked glycosylation of a beetle (Apriona germari) cellulase Ag-EGase II is necessary for enzymatic activity

We previously reported that the beta-1,4-endoglucanase (EGase) belonging to glycoside hydrolase family (GHF) 45 of the mulberry longicorn beetle, Apriona germari (Ag-EGase II), has three potential N-linked glycosylation sites; these sites are located at amino acid residues 56-59 (NKSG), 99-102 (NSTF), and 237-239 (NYSstop). In the present study, we analyze the functional role of these potential N-linked glycosylation sites. Tunicamycin treatment completely abolished the enzymatic activity of Ag-EGase II. To further elucidate the functional role of the N-linked glycosylation sites in Ag-EGase II, we have assayed the cellulase enzyme activity in Ser58Gln, Thr101Gln, or Ser239Gln mutants. Lack of N-linked glycosylation site at residues 99-102 (NSTF), the site of which is conserved in known beetle GHF 45 cellulases, showed loss of enzyme activity and reduced the molecular mass of the enzyme. In contrast, mutations in Ser58Gln or Ser239Gln affected neither the activity nor the apparent molecular mass of the enzyme, indicating that these sites did not lead to N-linked glycosylation. The present study demonstrates that N-linked glycosylation at residues 99-102 (NSTF), while not essential for secretion, is required for Ag-EGase II enzyme activity.

N-glycans of core2 beta(1,6)-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase-I (C2GnT-I) but not those of alpha(1,3)-fucosyltransferase-VII (FucT-VII) are required for the synthesis of functional P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1 (PSGL-1): effects on P-, L- and E-selectin binding

C2GnT-I [core2 beta(1,6)-N-acetyglucosaminyltransferase-I] and FucT-VII [alpha(1,3)-fucosyltransferase-VII] are the key enzymes for the biosynthesis of sialyl-Lewis x determinants on selectin ligands and therefore they represent good drug targets for the treatment of inflammatory disorders and other pathologies involving selectins. In the present study, we examined the importance of N-glycosylation for the ability of C2GnT-I and FucT-VII to generate functional selectin ligands, particularly the PSGL-1 (P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1). We found that (i) both enzymes have their two N-glycosylation sites occupied, (ii) for C2GnT-I, the N-glycan chain linked to Asn-95 significantly contributes to the synthesis of functional PSGL-1 and is required to localize the enzyme to the cis/medial-Golgi compartment, (iii) all N-glycosylation-deficient proteins of FucT-VII displayr a dramatic impairment of their in vitro enzymatic activities, but retain their ability to fucosylate the core2-modified PSGL-I and to generate P- and L-selectin binding, and (iv) the glycomutants of FucT-VII fail to synthesize sialyl-Lewis x or to generate E-selectin binding unless core2-modified PSGL-1 is present. All combined, our results show a differential functional impact of N-glycosylation on C2GnT-1 and FucT-VII and disclose that a strongly reduced FucT-VII activity retains the ability to fucosylate PSGL-1 on the core2-based binding site(s) for the three selectins.

Reaction mechanism and substrate specificity for nucleotide sugar of mammalian alpha1,6-fucosyltransferase--a large-scale preparation and characterization of recombinant human FUT8

FUT8, mammalian alpha1,6-fucosyltransferase, catalyzes the transfer of a fucose residue from the donor substrate, guanosine 5'-diphosphate (GDP)-beta-L-fucose, to the reducing terminal GlcNAc of the core structure of asparagine-linked oligosaccharide via an alpha1,6-linkage. FUT8 is a typical type II membrane protein, which is localized in the Golgi apparatus. We have previously shown that two neighboring arginine residues that are conserved among alpha1,2-, alpha1,6-, and protein O-fucosyltransferases play an important role in donor substrate binding. However, details of the catalytic and reaction mechanisms and the ternary structure of FUT8 are not understood except for the substrate specificity of the acceptor. To develop a better understanding of FUT8, we established a large-scale production system for recombinant human FUT8, in which the enzyme is produced in soluble form by baculovirus-infected insect cells. Kinetic analyses and inhibition studies using derivatives of GDP-beta-L-fucose revealed that FUT8 catalyzes the reaction which depends on a rapid equilibrium random mechanism and strongly recognizes the base portion and diphosphoryl group of GDP-beta-L-fucose. These results may also be applicable to other fucosyltransferases and glycosyltransferases.

Substitution of the N-glycan function in glycosyltransferases by specific amino acids: ST3Gal-V as a model enzyme

The sialyltranferase ST3Gal-V transfers a sialic acid to lactosylceramide. We investigated the role of each of the N-glycans modifying mouse ST3Gal-V (mST3Gal-V) by measuring the in vitro enzyme activity of Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells transfected with ST3Gal-V cDNA or its mutants. By examining mutants of mST3Gal-V, in which each asparagine was replaced with glutamine (N180Q, N224Q, N334Q), we determined that all three sites are N-glycosylated and that each N-glycan is required for enzyme activity. Despite their importance, N-glycosylation sites in ST3Gal-V are not conserved among species. Therefore, we considered whether the function in the activity that is performed in mST3Gal-V by the N-glycan could be substituted for by specific amino acid residues selected from the ST3Gal-V of other species or from related sialyltransferases (ST3Gal-I, -II, -III, and -IV), placed at or near the glycosylation sites. To this end, we constructed a series of interspecies mutants for mST3Gal-V, specifically, mST3Gal-V-H177D-N180S (medaka or tetraodon type), mST3Gal-V-N224K (human type), and mST3Gal-V-T336Q (zebrafish type). The ST3Gal-V activity of these mutants was quite similar to that of the wild-type enzyme. Thus, we have demonstrated here that the N-glycans on mST3Gal-V are required for activity but can be substituted for specific amino acid residues placed at or near the glycosylation sites. We named this method SUNGA (substitution of N-glycan functions in glycosyltransferases by specific amino acids). Furthermore, we verified that the ST3Gal-V mutant created using the SUNGA method maintains its high activity when expressed in Escherichia coli thereby establishing the usefulness of the SUNGA method in exploring the function of N-glycans in vivo.

N-glycosylation is necessary for enzymatic activity of a beetle (Apriona germari) cellulase

We previously reported that the beta-1,4-endoglucanase (EGase) belonging to glycoside hydrolase family 45 cloned from the mulberry longicorn beetle, Apriona germari (Ag-EGase I), is composed of 237 amino acid residues and has a potential N-glycosylation site at 97-100 amino acid residues (NSTF). We here describe the N-glycosylation and its role for enzymatic activity of the Ag-EGase I. The N-glycosylation of Ag-EGase I was revealed by the treatment of tunicamycin to the recombinant virus-infected insect Sf9 cells and by endoglycosidase F to the purified recombinant Ag-EGase I, demonstrating that the carbohydrate moieties are not necessary for secretion but essential for Ag-EGase I enzyme activity. To further elucidate the functional role of the N-glycosylation in Ag-EGase I, we have assayed the cellulase enzyme activity in Thr99Gln mutant. Lack of N-glycosylation in Ag-EGase I showed no substantial enzyme activity. This result demonstrates that N-glycosylation at site 97-100 amino acid residues (NSTF) is essential for enzyme activity.

Stable expression of recombinant human α3/4 fucosyltransferase III in Spodoptera frugiperda Sf9 cells

Human alpha3/4 fucosyltransferase III (FT3; EC 2.4.1.65) synthesizes fucosylated glycoconjugates, namely the Lewis (Le) determinants. FT3 is detected in milk, gastric mucosa, kidney and other organs, but is found in very low amounts in these native tissues. In this work, we describe the expression of a soluble secretory form of FT3 (SFT3) in Spodoptera frugiperda (Sf9) insect cells using a non-lytic vector system. The coding sequence was cloned into the expression vector pIB/V5-His-TOPO which contains the transcriptional control of the Orgyia pseudotsugata multicapsid nucleopolyhedrosis virus immediate-early 2 (OpIE2) promoter. Transfected cells were selected using blasticidin-HCl. It was observed that the secreted activity SFT3 increased until the sixth day of culture when it reached the value 1.9 mU x 10(-6) cells and 13.4 mg/l, whereas only 5% of activity was retained inside the cells. Western blot analysis of secreted and intracellularly retained SFT3 had a similar variation. Comparison of the stable with the lytic baculovirus expression system showed that the former yielded approx. 13-fold more active SFT3, which was possibly due to a lower accumulation of intracellular SFT3.

Properties of catalytic, linker and chitin-binding domains of insect chitinase

Manduca sexta (tobacco hornworm) chitinase is a glycoprotein that consists of an N-terminal catalytic domain, a Ser/Thr-rich linker region, and a C-terminal chitin-binding domain. To delineate the properties of these domains, we have generated truncated forms of chitinase, which were expressed in insect cells using baculovirus vectors. Three additional recombinant proteins composed of the catalytic domain fused with one or two insect or plant chitin-binding domains (CBDs) were also generated and characterized. The catalytic and chitin-binding activities are independent of each other because each activity is functional separately. When attached to the catalytic domain, the CBD enhanced activity toward the insoluble polymer but not the soluble chitin oligosaccharide primarily through an effect on the Km for the former substrate. The linker region, which connects the two domains, facilitates secretion from the cell and helps to stabilize the enzyme in the presence of gut proteolytic enzymes. The linker region is extensively modified by O-glycosylation and the catalytic domain is moderately N-glycosylated. Immunological studies indicated that the linker region, along with elements of the CBD, is a major immunogenic epitope. The results support the hypothesis that the domain structure of insect chitinase evolved for efficient degradation of the insoluble polysaccharide to soluble oligosaccharides during the molting process.