Bovine glomerular basement membrane. Location and structure of the asparagine-linked oligosaccharide units and their potential role in the assembly of the 7 S collagen IV tetramer

Collagen IV contains an amino-terminal tetramerization domain (7 S) that is involved in aggregation and cross-linking as part of the process of self-assembly of the collagen IV matrix of basement membranes. We determined the structure and location of the Asn-linked oligosaccharides of the 7 S tetramer. Two glycopeptides, GP-1 and GP-2, were isolated from tryptic digests of the 7 S tetramer and were characterized. GP-1 and GP-2 are derived from the alpha 1(IV) chain and the alpha 2(IV) chain, respectively. Each glycopeptide contained one sequence, -Asn-Xaa-Thr-, which was shown to be N-glycosylated at Asn, corresponding to position 126 of the alpha 1 chains and 138 of the alpha 2 chain. 1H NMR spectroscopic analysis of the oligosaccharide is a biantennary N-acetyllactosamine type of N-linked oligosaccharide with a broad heterogeneity in the presence of the sugar residues at their nonreducing termini as indicated. [formula: see text] The location of the Asn-linked oligosaccharide units and Hyl-linked disaccharide units and their orientation with respect to the surface of the triple helix were calculated using two models. We conclude that both units are important determinants in the assembly of the 7 S tetramer.     

Characterization of the N-oligosaccharides attached to the atypical Asn-X-Cys sequence of recombinant human epidermal growth factor receptor

The extracellular domain of human EGF receptor (sEGFR) produced by CHO cells has been used in various biophysical studies to elucidate the molecular mechanism of EGF-induced receptor activation. We have found that the CHO sEGFR contains one oligosaccharide chain attached to an atypical N-glycosylation consensus sequence, Asn(32 )-X( 33 )-Cys(34 ). The oligosaccharide structure at Asn(32 ) is a mixture of the monosialo and asialo forms of a core fucosylated biantennary complex-type oligosaccharide. Deletion of this atypical glycosylation site by replacement of Asn(32 ) with lysine changed neither the expression nor function of the full length EGFR in CHO cells. The glycosylation at Asn(32 ) in CHO sEGFR was incomplete: 20% of Asn(32 ) remained unmodified. Thus, CHO sEGFR itself is heterogeneous with respect to the glycosylation at Asn(32 ), which may cause problems in biophysical studies. An attempt to remove the oligosaccharide at Asn(32 ) enzymatically did not succeed under nondenaturing conditions. Therefore, sEGFR with the mutation of Asn(32) -> Lys(32 )is useful for biophysical and biochemical studies, and, particularly, for X-ray crystallography.     

Binding and precipitating activities of Lotus tetragonolobus isolectins with L-fucosyl oligosaccharides. Formation of unique homogeneous cross-linked lattices observed by electron microscopy

We have recently observed that certain asparagine-linked oligosaccharides are multivalent and capable of binding and precipitating with the D-mannose-specific lectin concanavalin A [cf. Bhattacharyya, L., & Brewer, C. F. (1989) Eur. J. Biochem. 178, 721-726] and with a variety of D-galactose-specific lectins [Bhattacharyya, L., Haraldsson, M., & Brewer, C. F. (1988) Biochemistry 27, 1034-1041]. In the present study, we have examined the binding and precipitating activities of a variety of mono- and biantennary L-fucosyl oligosaccharides with three L-fucose-specific isolectins from Lotus tetragonolobus, LTL-A, LTL-B, and LTL-C. The results show that certain difucosyl biantennary oligosaccharides are capable of cross-linking and precipitating with tetrameric isolectins, LTL-A and LTL-C, but not with dimeric isolectin, LTL-B. Quantitative precipitation analyses show that biantennary oligosaccharides containing the Lewis(x) antigen (or type 2 chain of Lewis(a)), Gal beta (1-4)[Fuc alpha (1-3)]GlcNAc, at the nonreducing terminus of each arm are bivalent ligands. However, a biantennary oligosaccharide containing a Lewis(x) determinant on one arm and a type 2 chain of blood group H(O) determinant, Fuc alpha (1-2)Gal beta (1-4)GlcNAc, on the other arm and a monoantennary oligosaccharide containing two fucose residues (analogue of the Lewis(y) antigen) bind but do not precipitate with the isolectins, indicating that the positions and linkage of fucose residues are critical for cross-linking.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Major carbohydrate structures at five glycosylation sites on murine IgM determined by high resolution 1H-NMR spectroscopy

Mouse myeloma immunoglobulin IgM heavy chains were cleaved with cyanogen bromide into nine peptide fragments, four of which contain asparagine-linked glycosylation. Three glycopeptides contain a single site, including Asn 171, 402, and 563 in the intact heavy chain. Another glycopeptide contains two sites at Asn 332 and 364. The carbohydrate containing fragments were treated with Pronase and fractionated by elution through Bio-Gel P-6. The major glycopeptides from each site were analyzed by 500 MHz 1H-NMR and the carbohydrate compositions determined by gas-liquid chromatography. The oligosaccharide located at Asn 171 is a biantennary complex and is highly sialylated. The amount of sialic acid varies, and some oligosaccharides contain alpha 1,3-galactose linked to the terminal beta 1,4-galactose. The oligosaccharides at Asn 332, Asn 364, an Asn 402 are all triantennary and are nearly completely sialylated on two branches and partially sialylated on the triantennary branch linked beta 1,4 to the core mannose. The latter is sialylated about 40% of the time for all three glycosylation sites. The major oligosaccharide located at Asn 563 is of the high mannose type. The 1H-NMR determination of structures at Asn 563 suggests that the high mannose oligosaccharide contains only three mannose residues.     

Involvement of the alpha chain in fibrin clot formation. Effect of monoclonal antibodies.

Murine monoclonal antibodies 9C3, 7B1, and 9E9 have been obtained using native human fibrinogen as the antigen. The antibodies reacted with the epitopes in the COOH-terminal domain of the A alpha chain. Fragmentation of the A alpha chain with plasmin, and, as in the case of the 9E9 epitope, with V8 protease, followed by isolation of the smallest reacting peptides, allowed the localization of the epitopes for 9C3, 7B1, and 9E9 to the amino acid sequences of alpha 240-268, alpha 425-440, and alpha 541-574, respectively. All three monoclonal antibodies strongly inhibited the rate of fibrin polymer assembly from monomers, both in the purified system and in the human plasma. The mechanism of this strong inhibition implied a rapid formation of fibrin protofibrils, followed by capping with IgG molecules of protofibrils containing approximately ten monomers. These observations demonstrated that certain regions in the COOH terminus of the alpha chain may play an important role in the assembly of a fibrin clot, presumably being involved in lateral aggregation of protofibrils.     

A unique proteolytic fragment of human fibrinogen containing the A alpha COOH-terminal domain of the native molecule

The COOH-terminal portion of the A alpha chain of human fibrinogen is highly susceptible to proteolytic degradation. This property has prevented isolation of the COOH-terminal domain of fibrinogen for the direct investigation of its functional characteristics. Human fibrinogen was degraded with hementin, a fibrinogen-olytic protease from the posterior salivary glands of the leech, Haementeria ghilianii. Two initial fragments, Yhem1 and Dhem1, produced by cleavage through the three polypeptide chains in the connector region, were characterized and shown to retain the entire A alpha COOH-terminal domain. Late cleavages by hementin occurred in the A alpha chain COOH-terminal region to produce fragments Yhem and Dhem with shorter A alpha chain remnants. Fragments Dhem were isolated from an intermediate hementin digest of fibrinogen using anion-exchange chromatography. Fragment Dhem1 was separated further from Dhem fragments with shorter alpha chain remnants by affinity chromatography on immobilized plasma fibronectin. Fragment Dhem1 represents a unique proteolytic fragment of fibrinogen containing an intact A alpha chain COOH-terminal region. NH2-terminal sequence analysis of isolated chains from fragment Dhem1 located hementin cleavage sites in the connector region to A alpha Asn102-Asn103, B beta Lys130-Gln131, and gamma Pro76-Asn77. The specific interaction of fragment Dhem1 with immobilized fibronectin indicated that the binding site probably was located within the COOH-terminal 111 amino acids of the A alpha chain. The overall pattern of fibrinogen cleavage by hementin is similar to that of plasmin, yet hementin cleaves preferably in the coiled-coil connector, sparing the A alpha COOH-terminal domain.     

Substitution of gamma Arg-275 by Cys in an abnormal fibrinogen, "fibrinogen Osaka II". Evidence for a unique solitary cystine structure at the mutation site

In an abnormal fibrinogen with impaired fibrin monomer polymerization designed as fibrinogen Osaka II, we have identified substitution of Arg by Cys at position 275 of the gamma chain. This Cys is linked to a free cysteine molecule by a disulfide link as evidenced by fast atom bombardment mass spectrometry. This finding was supported by identification of a single cysteine released from isolated abnormal fragment D1 upon reduction. This unique cystine structure at the mutation site has not been reported heretofore in any abnormal protein including fibrinogen. The substitution may well perturb the structure required for fibrin monomer polymerization, specifically that assigned to the carboxyl-terminal D domain of fibrinogen. Indeed, isolated fragment D1 with the Cys substitution failed to inhibit thrombin-mediated clotting of normal fibrinogen and normal fibrin monomer polymerization, while normal fragment D1 inhibited them markedly. Our data seem to provide supporting evidence that the putative polymerization site(s) assigned to the D domain of fibrinogen may be structure-dependent, including the carboxyl-terminal segment of the gamma chain as well as a contiguous region that contains the gamma 275 residue.     

Localization of the binding site on fibrin for the secondary binding site of thrombin

Affinity chromatography of active site inhibited thrombin on immobilized fragments derived from the central (desAB-NDSK) and terminal (D1) globular domains of fibrinogen revealed that the site responsible for the binding of thrombin at its secondary fibrin binding site is located in the central domain. Chromatography of various domains of the central nodule (desAB-NDSK, fibrinogen E, and fibrin E) having nonidentical amino acid sequences showed that all of these fragments are capable of binding to PMSF-thrombin-Sepharose, suggesting that the thrombin binding site resides within the peptide regions common to all of these fragments: alpha(Gly17-Met51), beta(Val55-Met118), and gamma(Tyr1-Lys53). Competitive affinity chromatography of the same binding domains revealed that there is no detectable difference in their binding constants to PMSF-thrombin-Sepharose, indicating that the alpha(Lys52-Lys78), beta(Gly15-Lys54)/(Tyr119-Lys122), and gamma(Thr54-Met78) peptide segments do not contribute significantly to the binding of thrombin. Chromatography of the isolated chains of fibrinogen E showed that the alpha(Gly17-Lys78) peptide region itself contains a strong binding site for PMSF-thrombin-Sepharose. The location of the binding site suggests that the secondary site interaction may play an important role in determining the cleavage specificity of thrombin on fibrinogen and can affect the rate of release of the fibrinopeptides. Affinity chromatography of fragments prepared from polymerized fibrin showed that cross-linked DD (D x D) itself does not bind to thrombin, whereas the D x DE complex remained attached to the column, suggesting that the binding site on fragment E for thrombin is distinct from its binding site for D x D.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

Carbohydrates of influenza virus. Structural elucidation of the individual glycans of the FPV hemagglutinin by two-dimensional 1H n.m.r. and methylation analysis.

The structures of the oligosaccharides of the hemagglutinin of fowl plague virus [influenza A/FPV/Rostock/34 (H7N1)] have been elucidated by one- and two-dimensional 1H n.m.r. spectroscopy at 500 MHz and by microscale methylation analysis. N-Glycosidic oligosaccharides of the oligomannosidic (OM) and of the N-acetyllactosaminic type have been found, the latter type comprising biantennary structures, without (A) or with (E) bisecting N-acetylglucosamine, and triantennary (C) structures. Analysis of the tryptic and thermolytic glycopeptides of the hemagglutinin allowed the allocation of these oligosaccharides to the individual glycosylation sites. Each attachment site contained a unique set of oligosaccharides. Asn12 contains predominantly structures C and E which are highly fucosylated. Asn28 contains OM and A structures that lack fucose and sulfate. Asn123 shows A that has incomplete antennae but is highly fucosylated and sulfated. Asn149 has fucosylated A and E. Asn231 shows fucosylated A and E with incomplete antennae. Asn406 has OM oligosaccharides. Asn478 has A and E with little fucose. Localization of the oligosaccharides on the three-dimensional structure of the hemagglutinin revealed that the oligomannosidic glycans are attached to glycosylation sites at which the enzymes responsible for carbohydrate processing do not have proper access. These observations demonstrate that an important structural determinant for the oligosaccharide side chains is the structure of the glycoprotein itself. In addition, evidence was obtained that the rate of glycoprotein synthesis also has an influence on carbohydrate structure.     

Complete primary structure of the triple-helical region and the carboxyl-terminal domain of a new type IV collagen chain, alpha 5(IV)

We have isolated and characterized overlapping cDNA clones which code for a previously unidentified human collagen chain. Although the cDNA-derived primary structure of this new polypeptide is very similar to the basement membrane collagen alpha 1(IV) and alpha 2(IV) chains, the carboxyl-terminal collagenous/non-collagenous junction sequence does not correspond to the junction sequence in either of the newly described alpha 3(IV) or alpha 4(IV) chains (Butkowski, R.J., Langeveld, J.P.M., Wieslander, J., Hamilton, J., and Hudson, B. G. (1987) J. Biol. Chem. 262, 7874-7877). Thus the protein presented here has been designated the alpha 5 chain of type IV collagen. Four clones encode an open reading frame of 1602 amino acids that cover about 95% of the entire chain including half of the amino-terminal 7S domain and all of the central triple-helical region and carboxyl-terminal NC1 domain. The collagenous region of the alpha 5(IV) chain contains 22 interruptions which are in most cases identical in distribution to those in both the alpha 1(IV) and alpha 2(IV) chains. Despite the relatively low degree of conservation among the amino acids in the triple-helical region of the three type IV collagen chains, analysis of the sequences clearly showed that alpha 5(IV) is more related to alpha 1(IV) than to alpha 2(IV). This similarity between the alpha 5(IV) and alpha 1(IV) chains is particularly evident in the NC1 domains where the two polypeptides are 83% identical in contrast to the alpha 5(IV) and alpha 2(IV) identity of 63%. In addition to greatly increasing the complexity of basement membranes, the alpha 5 chain of type IV collagen may be responsible for specialized functions of some of these extracellular matrices. In this regard, it is important to note that we have recently assigned the alpha 5(IV) gene to the region of the X chromosome containing the locus for a familial type of hereditary nephritis known as Alport syndrome (Myers, J.C., Jones, T.A., Pohjalainen, E.-R., Kadri, A.S., Goddard, A.D., Sheer, D., Solomon, E., and Pihlajaniemi, T. (1990) Am. J. Hum. Genet. 46, 1024-1033). Consequently, the newly discovered alpha 5(IV) collagen chain may have a critical role in inherited diseases of connective tissue.     

Impact of variable domain glycosylation on antibody clearance: an LC/MS characterization

Variable (Fv) domain N-glycosylation sites are found in approximately 20% of human immunoglobulin Gs (IgGs) in addition to the conserved N-glycosylation sites in the C(H)2 domains. The carbohydrate structures of the Fv glycans and their impact on in vivo half-life are not well characterized. Oligosaccharide structures in a humanized anti-Abeta IgG1 monoclonal antibody (Mab) with an N-glycosylation site in the complementary determining region (CDR2) of the heavy chain variable region were elucidated by LC/MS analysis following sequential exoglycosidase treatments of the endoproteinase Lys-C digest. Results showed that the major N-linked oligosaccharide structures in the Fv region have three characteristics (core-fucosylated biantennary oligosaccharides with one or two N-glycolylneuraminic acid [NeuGc] residues, zero or one alpha-linked Gal residue, and zero or one beta-linked GalNAc residue), whereas N-linked oligosaccharides in the Fc region contained typical Fc glycans (core-fucosylated, biantennary oligosaccharides with zero to two Gal residues). To elucidate the contribution of Fv glycans to the half-life of the antibody, a method that allows capture of the Mab and determination of its glycan structures at various time points after administration to mice was developed. Anti-Abeta antibody in mouse serum was immunocaptured by immobilized goat anti-human immunoglobulin Fc(gamma) antibody resin, and the captured material was treated with papain to generate Fab and Fc for LC/MS analysis. Different glycans in the Fc region showed the same clearance rate as demonstrated previously. In contrast to many other non-antibody glycosylated therapeutics, there is no strong correlation between oligosaccharide structures in the Fv region and their clearance rates in vivo. Our data indicated that biantennary oligosaccharides lacking galactosylation had slightly faster clearance rates than other structures in the Fv domain.     

Site-specific N-glycosylation analysis of human plasma ceruloplasmin using liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry

Ceruloplasmin has ferroxidase activity and plays an essential role in iron metabolism. In this study, a site-specific glycosylation analysis of human ceruloplasmin (CP) was carried out using reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS/MS). A tryptic digest of carboxymethylated CP was subjected to LC-ESI-MS/MS. Product ion spectra acquired data-dependently were used for both distinction of the glycopeptides from the peptides using the carbohydrate B-ions, such as m/z 204 (HexNAc) and m/z 366 (HexHexNAc), and identification of the peptide moiety of the glycopeptide based on the presence of the b- and y-series ions derived from the peptide. Oligosaccharide composition was deduced from the molecular weight calculated from the observed mass of the glycopeptide and theoretical mass of the peptide. Of the seven potential N-glycosylation sites, four (Asn119, Asn339, Asn378, and Asn743) were occupied by a sialylated biantennary or triantennary oligosaccharide with fucose residues (0, 1, or 2). A small amount of sialylated tetraantennary oligosaccharide was detected. Exoglycosidase digestion suggested that fucose residues were linked to reducing end GlcNAc in biantennary oligosaccharides and to reducing end and/or alpha1-3 to outer arms GlcNAc in triantennary oligosaccharides and that roughly one of the antennas in triantennary oligosaccharides was alpha2-3 sialylated and occasionally alpha1-3 fucosylated at GlcNAc.     

Monoclonal antibodies to alpha-chain regions of human fibrinogen that participate in polymer formation

Monoclonal antibodies have been generated against a cross-link-containing derivative of alpha polymer (alpha XLCNBr), isolated following CNBr digestion of fibrin [Sobel, J. H., Ehrlich, P. H., Birken, S., Saffran, A. J., & Canfield, R. E. (1983) Biochemistry (preceding paper in this issue)]. One cloned cell line (F-102) was chosen for characterization based on its apparent specificity for the A alpha-chain region A alpha 518-584 (CNBr X). A second line (F-103) was selected because of its anti-A alpha 241-476 (CNBr VIII) properties. These two regions of the A alpha chain have previously been implicated as major contributors to the cross-linking process that leads to alpha-polymer formation. Radioimmunoassays have been developed, employing the immunoglobulins produced by clones F-102 and F-103. These assays have been applied, in conjunction with high-performance liquid chromatography purified tryptic and chymotryptic derivatives of CNBr VIII and CNBr X, to localize the respective determinants involved in antibody binding. In each case, virtually full immunoreactivity was exhibited by both the CNBr fragment and a single tryptic or chymotryptic peptide originating from it. These findings indicate that sequence-specific, rather than conformational, determinants were operative in the generation of antibodies F-102 and F-103. The epitope recognized by F-102 was localized to the region of A alpha 540-554, while the F-103 binding site resided within A alpha 259-276. When these radioimmunoassays were applied to study the relative immunoreactivity exhibited by a variety of fibrinogen derivatives, the results obtained support earlier suggestions that the COOH-terminal portion of the A alpha chain contains regions of random conformation.     

The spectrum of N-linked oligosaccharide structures detected by enzymic microsequencing on a recombinant soluble CD4 glycoprotein from Chinese hamster ovary cells

Structures of the N-linked oligosaccharides of a recombinant soluble form of human CD4 glycoprotein (sCD4) have been investigated by enzymic microsequencing. The glycoprotein has two N-glycosylation sites, Asn271 and Asn300, at both of which evidence for the presence of complex type biantennary sialo-oligosaccharides has been obtained previously by mass spectrometric analyses [Carr, S.A., Hemling, M.E., Folena-Wasserman, G., Sweet, R.W., Anumula, K., Barr, J.R., Huddleston, M.J. & Taylor, P. (1989) J. Biol. Chem. 264, 21,286-21,295]. Among oligosaccharides released from sCD4 by hydrazinolysis and labelled with NaB3H4, neutral (12.8%) and acidic (87.2%) oligosaccharides were detected by paper electrophoresis. The latter were rendered neutral following sialidase treatment indicating that acidity was due exclusively to the presence of sialic acid residues. By enzymic microsequencing of the sialidase-treated oligosaccharides (fractionated on affinity columns of Ricinis communis agglutinin 120 and concanavalin A) in conjunction with methylation data from the earlier study, 14 sequences were identified. These accounted for over 80% of the sialidase-treated oligosaccharides of sCD4 as follows: [formula: see text] where +/- indicates residues present on only a proportion of chains. The spectrum of oligosaccharide structures released from each glycosylation site was assessed as being similar to that of total oligosaccharides on the basis of their chromatographic profiles on the lectin columns and on Bio-Gel P-4.     

Thrombin binding to the A alpha-, B beta-, and gamma-chains of fibrinogen and to their remnants contained in fragment E

In order to study thrombin interaction with fibrinogen, thrombin binding to fragments D and E (prepared by plasmin digestion of fibrinogen) and to intact S-carboxymethylated chains of fibrinogen (A alpha, B beta, and gamma) was analyzed by autoradiography, immunoblotting, and affinity chromatography. Complex formation was observed between late fragment E and thrombin but not with fragment D. The three reduced chain remnants of fragment E all formed complexes with thrombin. Also, thrombin bound to the intact, separated A alpha, B beta, and gamma chains of fibrinogen as well as to the alpha and beta chains of fibrin. In these experiments the extended substrate-binding site, but not the catalytic-binding site, was being examined because fragment E had as its amino-terminal amino acids Val20 in the alpha chain, Lys54 in the beta chain, and Tyr1 in the gamma chain. Also, thrombin inhibited in its active center by D-phenyl-alanyl-L-prolyl-L-arginine-chloromethyl ketone bound to fragment E and to the separated chains in the same manner as unmodified thrombin. A lysine residue to thrombin was essential for its binding to fibrinogen. Thrombin attached to CNBr-activated Sepharose through its amino groups did not bind to fragment E, but when thrombin was attached through its carboxyl groups, it bound fragment E.     

纤维蛋白单体D区与E区聚合后E区结构的变化

应用纤维蛋白单克隆抗体IF 5 3,观察当纤维蛋白的“A”位点与另一纤维蛋白D区域的“a”位点结合后纤维蛋白E区的变化 .纤维蛋白原Aα链经赖氨酰肽链内切酶消化后 ,应用反相HPLC分离纯化 ;通过ELISA法检测单克隆抗体IF 5 3与纤维蛋白原及其衍生物的反应情况 ;应用放射免疫法检测RGD合成肽抑制纤维蛋白单体与IF 5 3反应的情况 .发现IF 5 3能与纤维蛋白原Aα链的一个片段反应 ,该片段经氨基酸序列分析显示为纤维蛋白原Aα链氨基末端 (1～ 2 9) .该抗体能与酸溶解的纤维蛋白单体和可溶性纤维蛋白及XDP反应 ,但不能与酸化纤维蛋白原或GPRP反应 ,因此IF 5 3的抗原决定簇在Aα 2 0～ 2 9,与凝血酶作用于纤维蛋白肽A ,暴露出的聚合位点“A”(Aα17～19)紧邻 .当GPRP存在于纤维蛋白原溶液时 ,经凝血酶作用产生这种纤维蛋白单体不能与IF 5 3反应 .Aα(93～ 99) (ILRGDFS)合成肽部分抑制纤维蛋白单体与IF 5 3的反应 .实验结果提示 ,当纤维蛋白单体相互聚合 ,或纤维蛋白单体与纤维蛋白原聚合时 ,纤维蛋白单体结构会发生变化 ,其中Aα2 0～ 2 9片段成为新抗原暴露于E区表面 ,并且Aα2 0～ 2 9与纤维蛋白原细胞粘附区域RGD1片段邻近     

Lymphocyte suppressive peptides from fibrinogen are derived predominantly from the A alpha chain

Cellular immune responses can elicit local deposition of fibrin at the site of immunologic reactions, as well as the formation of intravascular fibrin in disseminated reactions. The subsequent physiologic proteolysis of fibrinogen and fibrin by plasmin results in small peptides that suppress lymphocyte functions in vitro and in the immune response in vivo. The intramolecular origin of lymphocyte suppressive activity and the proteolytic events responsible for the release of active peptides have been analyzed. Plasmic peptides from the isolated B beta and gamma constituent chains of fibrinogen did not inhibit mitogen-driven responses of human peripheral blood mononuclear cells. In contrast, plasmic digests of the A alpha chain, but not the intact A alpha chain were suppressive. Advanced plasmic digests of fibrinogen and the A alpha chain were suppressive at similar concentrations, suggesting that biological activity is derived predominantly from the A alpha chain. Limited plasmic digests of fibrinogen were fractionated to yield a heat-precipitable 250,000 dalton fragment X and heat-soluble proteolytic products containing fragments derived from the carboxyl-terminal region of the A alpha chain including a 42,000 dalton major A alpha chain derivative. Neither fragment X nor derivatives produced by its additional plasmic proteolysis were suppressive. In contrast, the heat-soluble fraction from limited plasmic cleavage was suppressive, and this activity was enhanced 10-fold by additional plasmic cleavage of this fraction. The isolated 42,000 dalton A alpha chain fragment was devoid of activity, but plasmic digestion of this derivative generated peptides of less than 8000 daltons that inhibited mitogen-stimulated thymidine uptake by lymphocytes. Two synthetic peptides corresponding to A alpha 220-230 and B beta 43-47, peptides with known vasoactive activities, suppressed lymphocyte thymidine uptake at very high concentrations. Based on their maximal yield from plasmic digests of fibrinogen, these two peptides would account for only 1% of the immunosuppressive activity of fibrinogen derivatives. In summary, the results indicate that the suppressive activity of fibrinogen is predominantly derived from the 42,000 dalton carboxyl terminal region of the A alpha chain of the molecule and is not attributable to the known vasoactive peptides. Initial proteolytic release of this region from the core of fibrinogen does not result in suppressive activity, but additional cleavage releases small peptides with the lymphocyte inhibitory function.     

Site-specific glycosylation in animal cells. Substitution of glutamine for asparagine 293 in chicken ovalbumin does not allow glycosylation of asparagine 312

It has been shown previously that chicken ovalbumin synthesized and secreted in a heterologous cell system is glycosylated at the correct site and that the oligosaccharides at that site, similar to the protein made in hen oviduct, are predominantly of the hybrid type (Sheares, B. T., and Robbins, P. W. (1986) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 83, 1993-1997). This site-specific glycosylation of Asn293, but not Asn312, suggested a prominent role for the nascent protein chain rather than the specific cell type in directing the proper attachment of oligosaccharide chains. In the present study, the effect of glycosylation at Asn293 on the glycosylation of Asn312 has been investigated. Using a 20-base oligodeoxynucleotide primer containing a 2-base mismatch, the codon for Asn293 in the chicken ovalbumin gene (AAC) was changed to that for Gln (CAA), thereby preventing glycosylation at amino acid 293. Constructions containing this mutation were transfected into mouse L (tk-) cells which were subsequently labeled with [35S]methionine. Ovalbumin secreted by these cells was recovered by immunoaffinity chromatography and analyzed for the presence of an oligosaccharide attached at Asn312. Treatment of the material with peptide:N-glycosidase F demonstrated that ovalbumin molecules containing Gln substituted for Asn293 were not glycosylated. This further supports our earlier hypothesis that the nascent protein chain is responsible for directing site-specific glycosylation of ovalbumin, and that the presence of an oligosaccharide chain at the first site has no influence on glycosylation at the second site.     

A frameshift mutation results in a truncated nonfunctional carboxyl-terminal pro alpha 1(I) propeptide of type I collagen in osteogenesis imperfecta

A codon frameshift mutation caused by a single base (U) insertion after base pair 4088 of prepro alpha 1(I) mRNA of type I procollagen was identified in a baby with lethal perinatal osteogenesis imperfecta. The mutation was identified in fibroblast RNA by a new method that allows the direct detection of mismatched bases by chemical modification and cleavage in heteroduplexes formed between mRNA and control cDNA probes. The region of mismatches was specifically amplified by the polymerase chain reaction and sequenced. The heterozygous mutation in the amplified cDNA most likely resulted from a T insertion in exon 49 of COL1A1. The frameshift resulted in a truncated pro alpha 1(I) carboxyl-terminal propeptide in which the amino acid sequence was abnormal from Val1146 to the carboxyl terminus. The propeptide lacked Asn1187, which normally carries an N-linked oligosaccharide unit, and was more basic than the normal propeptide. The distribution of cysteines was altered and the mutant propeptide was unable to form normal interchain disulfide bonds. Some of the mutant pro alpha 1(I)' chains were incorporated into type I procollagen molecules but resulted in abnormal helix formation with over-hydroxylation of lysine residues, increased degradation, and poor secretion. Only normal type I collagen was incorporated into the extracellular matrix in vivo resulting in a tissue type I collagen content approximately 20% of that of control (Bateman, J. F., Chan, D., Mascara, T., Rogers, J. G., and Cole, W. G. (1986) Biochem. J. 240, 699-708).     

Escherichia coli mutant trpA34 has an Asp----Asn change at active site residue 60 of the tryptophan synthetase alpha chain

Asp-60 is believed to be a catalytically essential residue of the tryptophan synthetase alpha chain of Escherichia coli (Nagata, S., Hyde, C.C., and Miles, E.W. (1989) J. Biol. Chem. 264, 6288-6296). Surprisingly, mutations altering Asp-60 were not observed in the many trpA missense mutants characterized in the 1960s. However, there was one genetic class of trpA missense mutants, represented by trpA34, for which protein structure analyses failed to detect an amino acid substitution. DNA sequence analyses have now shown that the trpA34 mutation was in codon 60 and that it resulted in replacement of Asp-60 by Asn. This finding provides additional support for the conclusion that the tryptophan synthetase alpha chain contains only a small number of absolutely essential residues.