Recombinant bovine zona pellucida glycoproteins ZP3 and ZP4 coexpressed in Sf9 cells form a sperm-binding active hetero-complex

The zona pellucida (ZP) is a transparent envelope that surrounds the mammalian oocyte and mediates species-selective sperm-egg interactions. Porcine and bovine ZPs are composed of the glycoproteins ZP2, ZP3, and ZP4. We previously established an expression system for porcine ZP glycoproteins (ZPGs) using baculovirus in insect Sf9 cells. Here we established a similar method for expression of bovine ZPGs. The recombinant ZPGs were secreted into the medium and purified by metal-chelating column chromatography. A mixture of bovine recombinant ZP3 (rZP3) and rZP4 coexpressed in Sf9 cells exhibited inhibitory activity for bovine sperm-ZP binding similar to that of a native bovine ZPG mixture, whereas neither bovine rZP3 nor rZP4 inhibited binding. An immunoprecipitation assay revealed that the coexpressed rZP3/rZP4 formed a hetero-complex. We examined the functional domain structure of bovine rZP4 by constructing ZP4 mutants lacking the N-terminal domain or lacking both the N-terminal and trefoil domains. When either of these mutant proteins was coexpressed with bovine rZP3, the resulting mixtures exhibited inhibitory activity comparable to that of the bovine rZP3/rZP4 complex. Hetero-complexes of bovine rZP3 and porcine rZP4, or porcine rZP3 and bovine rZP4, also inhibited bovine sperm-ZP binding. Our results demonstrate that the N-terminal and trefoil domains of bovine rZP4 are dispensable for formation of the sperm-binding active bovine rZP3/rZP4 complex and, furthermore, that the molecular interactions between rZP3 and rZP4 are conserved in the bovine and porcine systems.     

Distinct membrane fractions from mouse sperm bind different zona pellucida glycoproteins.

Interactions between sperm and zona pellucida (ZP) during mammalian fertilization are not well characterized at the molecular level. To identify sperm proteins that recognize ligand ZP3, we used sonicated sperm membrane fractions as competitors in a quantitative binding assay. Sonicated membranes were density fractionated into 4 fractions. Bands 1-3 contained membrane vesicles, and band 4 contained axonemal and midpiece fragments. In competitive binding assays, bands 1, 2, and 3 but not band 4 were able to compete with live, capacitated, intact sperm for soluble 125I-ZP binding. Affinity-purified ZP fractions consisting of a ZP3-enriched fraction (125I-ZP3) and a fraction enriched for ligands ZP1 and ZP2 and depleted of ZP3 (125I-ZP1/2) were obtained by antibody affinity purification of ZP3. In competitive binding assays, bands 2 and 3 competed for 125I-ZP3 binding, but band 1 did not interact with enriched 125I-ZP3. None of the membrane fractions competed for 125I-ZP1/2 binding. These results demonstrate that band 2 and band 3 contain sperm components that interact with ZP3 alone and that components in band 1 interact with ZP3 in conjunction with either ZP1 or ZP2. These data indicate that there must be at least 2 unique sperm plasma membrane components that mediate intact sperm interactions with ZP glycoproteins in mouse. Bands 2 and 3 are likely to contain a primary ZP-binding protein because they interacted directly with ZP3, whereas band 1 may contain sperm proteins involved in later interactions with the ZP, perhaps transitional interactions to maintain sperm contact with the ZP during acrosomal exocytosis.     

Neutral oligosaccharide structures linked to asparagines of porcine zona pellucida glycoproteins

N-Linked sugar chains were liberated by hydrazinolysis from porcine zona pellucida glycoproteins obtained from ovarian follicular oocytes. Neutral sugar chains were separated from acidic ones by paper electrophoresis and fractionated with a serial lectin column chromatography and Bio-Gel P-4 column chromatography. Their structural analysis by sequential glycosidase digestion in combination with methylation analysis revealed that the neutral sugar chains are of bi-, tri-, and tetraantennary complex type with a fucosylated trimannosyl core. Twenty-six percent of the sugar chains contain N-acetyllactosamine repeating structures in their outer chain moieties. Only linear N-acetyllactosamine repeats, the maximum size of which is hexasaccharide, are detected. A characteristic feature is that 39% of the sugar chains contain N-acetylglucosamine residues at their nonreducing termini in spite of the absence of bisected sugar chains. This study provided, for the first time, the substantial information about the sugar chain structures of mammalian zona pellucida glycoproteins.     

Proteolysis of specific porcine zona pellucida glycoproteins by boar acrosin

The morphologic and biochemical effects on the structure and constituent glycoproteins of the zona pellucida (ZP) by a specific sperm enzyme, acrosin, and a nonsperm enzyme, trypsin, have been evaluated. Intact porcine ZP matricies, exposed to either acrosin or trypsin, were analyzed microscopically. Changes in specific glycoproteins were monitored by high-resolution two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (2D-PAGE) and the silver-based color stain, GELCODE. Although these enzymes did not alter the macroscopic properties of the ZP matrix, the 2D-PAGE ZP protein patterns were markedly altered. The high molecular weight glycoprotein families (II and III) were sensitive to proteolytic digestion, whereas the major glycoprotein family (I) of the porcine zona was only partially proteolyzed by acrosin and trypsin. Furthermore, it was demonstrated that acrosin had unique substrate specificity compared to that of trypsin, since the ZP peptide patterns were found to be different. These studies are the first to demonstrate which integral glycoproteins of the native porcine ZP matrix are specifically proteolyzed by acrosin from the homologous species and that this proteolysis occurs without the dissolution of the native porcine matrix.     

An economic approach to isotopic enrichment of glycoproteins expressed from Sf9 insect cells

It is estimated that over half of all proteins are glycosylated, yet only a small number of the structures in the protein data bank are of intact glycoproteins. One of the reasons for the lack of structural information on glycoproteins is the high cost of isotopically labeling proteins expressed from eukaryotic cells such as in insect and mammalian cells. In this paper we describe modifications to commercial insect cell growth medium that reduce the cost for isotopically labeling recombinant proteins expressed from Sf9 cells. A key aspect of this work was to reduce the amount of glutamine in the cell culture medium while maintaining sufficient energy yielding metabolites for vigorous growth by supplementing with glucose and algae-derived amino acids. We present an analysis of cell growth and protein production in Sf9 insect cells expressing secreted Thy1-GFP fusion construct. We also demonstrate isotopic enrichment of the Thy-1 protein backbone with ¹⁵N and carbohydrates with ¹³C by NMR spectroscopy.Electronic supplementary material is available in the online version of this article at and is accessible for authorized users.     

Nitric oxide synthase inhibition in human sperm affects sperm-oocyte fusion but not zona pellucida binding

There is recent evidence that mouse and human spermatozoa contain constitutive nitric oxide synthase (cNOS) and can synthesize nitric oxide. The aim of this study was to investigate whether the inhibition of human sperm cNOS could affect sperm-oocyte fusion and sperm binding to the zona pellucida (ZP). N(G)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) was used as cNOS inhibitor. Sperm-oocyte fusion was evaluated using the hamster egg penetration test (HEPT). The ZP binding was evaluated using the hemizona assay. L-NAME added from the onset of capacitation strongly inhibited sperm-oocyte fusion. This inhibitory effect was dose dependent, stereospecific, and suppressed by L-arginine in a dose-dependent manner. L-NAME also inhibited sperm-oocyte fusion in the HEPT enhanced with progesterone (P), where P (5 microM) was added for 15 min to capacitated sperm. A lesser but significant inhibition was also observed when sperm suspensions were exposed to L-NAME following capacitation in both versions of HEPT. On the contrary, L-NAME did not affect ZP binding. In conclusion, the present study provides the evidence that cNOS plays a role in the human sperm's capacity to fuse with oocyte but not in the ZP binding.     

Porcine sperm surface beta1,4galactosyltransferase binds to the zona pellucida but is not necessary or sufficient to mediate sperm-zona pellucida binding.

The binding of sperm to the zona pellucida is an integral part of the mammalian fertilization process, investigated most extensively in the mouse. Several sperm receptors for the murine zona pellucida have been studied (Snell WJ, White JM. 1996. Cell 85:629-637; Wassarman PM. 1999. Cell 96:175-183), but the most compelling evidence exists for beta-1,4-galactosyltransferase (GalTase). Considering that GalTase is present on the surface of porcine sperm (Larson JL, Miller DJ. 1997. Biol Reprod 57:442-453), we investigated the role of GalTase in porcine sperm-zona binding. Sperm surface GalTase catalyzed the addition of uridine diphosphate-[(3)H]galactose to the 55 kDa group of the porcine zona pellucida proteins implicated in sperm binding, demonstrating that GalTase binds the porcine zona. The functional importance of GalTase-zona pellucida binding was tested. Addition of uridine diphosphate galactose, a substrate that completes the GalTase enzymatic reaction and disrupts GalTase mediated adhesion, had no effect on binding of sperm to porcine oocytes. Furthermore, removal of the GalTase zona ligand by incubation of oocytes with N-acetylglucosaminidase had no effect on binding of sperm to oocytes. These results suggest that GalTase is not necessary for sperm to bind to the zona pellucida. Digestion of isolated porcine zona proteins with N-acetylglucosaminidase did not affect the biological activity of soluble porcine zona proteins in competitive sperm-zona binding assays, suggesting that GalTase alone is not sufficient to mediate sperm-zona attachment. From these results, it appears that, although GalTase is able to bind porcine zona proteins, its function in porcine sperm-zona binding is not necessary or sufficient for sperm-zona binding. This supports the contention that porcine sperm-zona binding requires redundant gamete receptors.     

Characterization of the zona pellucida glycoproteins from bovine ovarian and fertilized eggs

Bovine zone pellucida (ZP) glycorproteins from ovarian egg emerged as three bands with molecular mass of 78 kDa, 64 kDa and 21 kDa in SDS-PAGE under reducing conditions. Endo-β-galactosidase (EβG) digestion of the glycoproteins yielded five products with molecular mass of 76 kDa (EβG-76), 68 kDa (EβG-68), 63 kDa(EβG-63), 47 kDa (EβG-47) and 21 kDa (EβG-21) under the same conditions. The N-terminal amino acid sequences of EβG-76 and EβG-21 were identical. This fact together with the results of diagonal SDS-PAGE indicated that EβG-21 (N-terminal region) is linked to EβG-63 (C-terminal region) through disulfide bond to form EβG-76. Immunoblot analysis using anti-pig ZP protein antibodies revealed that bovine EβG-76, EβG-68 and EβG-47 correspond to pig PZP2, PZP3α and PZPEβ glycoproteins, respectively. The EβG-76 and EβG-68 components were shown to be specifically cleaved during fertilization.     

Identification of the carboxyl termini of porcine zona pellucida glycoproteins ZPB and ZPC

The extracellular matrix surrounding mammalian oocytes plays important roles in fertilization and is known as the zona pellucida (ZP). The ZP consists of three glycoproteins, ZPA, ZPB, and ZPC, which contain homologous regions known as ZP domains. The ZP domain is also found in many other secretory glycoproteins. Putative transmembrane domains present at the C-termini of ZP glycoprotein precursors are removed as the proteins proceed through the secretory pathway. However, the details of this processing have been unclear. In particular, the precise locations of the C-termini of mammalian zona proteins have not yet been determined. In this study, the C-terminal residues of porcine ZPB and ZPC were identified as Ala-462 and Ser-332, respectively, by mass spectrometry of C-terminal polypeptide fragments of these proteins. These results suggest that ZPB is processed at its furin consensus site, whereas ZPC is processed N-terminal to the furin consensus site. In addition, the analyses of porcine ZPB and ZPC fragments revealed that disulfide bonds within the ZP domains are divided into two groups, suggesting that the ZP domain consists of two subdomains.     

Immunolocalization of proacrosin/acrosin in bovine sperm and sperm penetration through the zona pellucida

The aim of the present work was to immunolocalize acrosin in bull spermatozoa incubated for up to 6 h in capacitating culture medium (TALP-heparin), in order to study the kinetics of its release during the acrosome reaction and in vitro sperm penetration. Six replicates from semen of one bull were used. Acrosin was localized by the silver-enhanced immunogold technique using anti-bovine acrosin monoclonal antibody ACRO-C2E5. Spermatozoa thus showed the presence of acrosin only at the acrosomal region. Four different patterns were seen: (1) no labeling: (2) intense labeling on the rim of the portion of the acrosome; (3) diffuse label over the entire acrosomal region; and (4) intense label over the entire acrosomal region. Spermatozoa incubated in capacitating medium for 4 h showed that unlabeled (pattern 1) spermatozoa decreased from 72% to 28% difference that was found to be significant (p<0.05). Patterns 3 and 4 increased from about 10% to 20-29%, (p<0.05). With further incubation (4-6 h), pattern 1 increased while patterns 3 and 4 decreased differences were not significant (p0.05). The incidence of pattern 2 did not change through the whole incubation period. Sperm penetration through the zona pellucida of in vitro matured bovine oocytes (57%) or empty zonae pellucida (70.5%) increased (p<0.05) as a function of sperm incubation time in capacitating medium. The presence of acrosin, as determined by the silver-enhanced immunogold technique, was highly correlated with sperm penetration of in vitro mature bovine oocyte (r=0.98) and cryopreserved zonae pellucidae (r=0.93) (p<0.01).     

PH‐20 but not acrosin is involved in sperm penetration of the macaque zona pellucida

In this study, we investigated the functions of PH‐20 and acrosin during the interaction of macaque sperm with the zona pellucida. Both of these sperm enzymes have been reported to be present on the inner acrosomal membrane of acrosome reacted sperm, and have been suggested to play a role during secondary sperm‐zona binding in other species. Anti‐macaque PH‐20 IgG, anti‐pig acrosin IgG and soybean trypsin inhibitor (SBTI) were used as probes for immunolocalization of the two proteins at the ultrastructural level, and as reagents for blocking sperm penetration of the macaque zona pellucida in vitro. As a control, we performed similar studies with antibodies to CD‐46, which is also located on the inner acrosomal membrane, but has no known function in sperm‐zona pellucida interaction. After labeling with anti‐acrosin IgG, gold label was not present on the sperm surface before the acrosome reaction, but was detected over the entire head of sperm that were induced to acrosome react with calcium ionophore A23187. In contrast, when sperm were induced to acrosome react by binding to intact zona pellucida, acrosin was present in the acrosomal shroud but not on the inner acrosomal membrane. Similar results were obtained when SBTI was used as a probe for enzyme localization. PH‐20 and CD‐46 were demonstrated on the inner acrosomal membrane of sperm induced to acrosome react by ionophore treatment and by zona binding. Neither anti‐acrosin IgG nor anti‐CD‐46 IgG affected sperm penetration of the zona at concentrations up to 300 μg/ml, but zona penetration was blocked completely when anti‐PH‐20 IgG (100 μg/ml) was present during sperm‐oocyte interaction. Ultrastructural observations of oocytes incubated with anti‐PH‐20 IgG showed that acrosomal shrouds were present on the zona surface but no sperm had begun to penetrate into the zona substance. We conclude that anti‐PH‐20 IgG prevented sperm penetration of the macaque zona pellucida by interference with secondary sperm‐zona binding, rather than primary sperm‐zona binding or the zona‐induced acrosome reaction. Acrosin was not detected on the inner acrosomal membrane of sperm that are induced to acrosome react after zona binding, and acrosin does not appear to be critical for sperm penetration of the macaque zona pellucida. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 53:350–362, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Disulfide formation in bovine zona pellucida glycoproteins during fertilization: evidence for the involvement of cystine cross-linkages in hardening of the zona pellucida

The time for solubilization of the bovine zona pellucida in a hypotonic buffer containing 5% (v/v) beta-mercaptoethanol and 7 mol urea l-1 increased by 10% after fertilization. Coupling with a specific fluorescent thiol probe, monobromobimane (mBBr), was markedly greater in the zona pellucida of ovarian eggs compared with fertilized eggs, indicating that the cysteine residues in the zona pellucida of unfertilized eggs are oxidized to cystines during fertilization. After endo-beta-galactosidase digestion to remove N-acetyllactosamine repeats of the carbohydrate chains, three zona pellucida glycoproteins (ZPA, ZPB and ZPC) coupled with the fluorescent bimane groups were fractionated efficiently by reverse-phase HPLC. Estimation of bimane groups in the three components and SDS-PAGE revealed that intramolecular disulfide bonds in ZPA and intra- and intermolecular disulfide bonds in ZPB were formed during fertilization, but oxidation of cysteine residues in ZPC was low. Specific proteolysis of ZPA during fertilization was also observed. These results indicate that the formation of disulfide linkages together with specific proteolysis result in the construction of a rigid zona pellucida structure, which is responsible for hardening of the zona pellucida.     

The interaction of living boar sperm and sperm plasma membrane vesicles with the porcine zona pellucida

Enzymological, morphological, and immunological methods were used to characterize further the interaction of noncapacitated boar spermatozoa with the porcine zona pellucida. Transmission electron microscopy showed that sperm usually bind to the zona over the head region of the cell. Only the plasma membrane is involved in this binding. Bound sperm will undergo the acrosome reaction when treated with calcium and the ionophore A23187. The ability of intact sperm to bind to porcine eggs in vitro and the ability of sperm plasma membrane vesicles to absorb univalent antibody to the sperm binding site for the zona were used to determine the effects of various physical, chemical, and enzymological treatments on the sperm binding sites. These sites were resistant to a number of enzymes including proteases and polysaccharidases, but were inactivated by heat and trichloroacetic acid. Binding sites on the zona were inactivated by extracts from small quantities of sperm. Binding was also blocked by Fab antibody to whole zonae absorbed to other swine tissue and by similarly absorbed Fab antibody to sperm plasma membranes. These data provide further support for the presence of zona recognition sites on the plasma membrane of noncapacitated boar sperm. The binding sites on the sperm plasma membrane do not appear to be peripheral membrane proteins nor major constituents of a surface glycocalyx.     

Contraceptive potential of porcine zona pellucida in cats

The contraceptive potential of solubilized porcine zona pellucida (spZP) was studied in 2 groups of cats after active immunization using slightly different protocols. Cats from Group 1 (n = 3) were immunized with a total of 300 8g spZP divided in 4 s.c. multisite injections (each of 37.5 8g) given at 10 day intervals followed by a booster 150 days after the initial immunization. Cats from Group 2 (n = 5) were immunized with a total of 400 8g spZP divided in 4 i.m. injections (each of 50 8g) given at 2 wk intervals followed by a booster 92 days after initial immunization. Immunogen was emulsified in Complete Freund Adjuvant for the first dose and in Incomplete Freund Adjuvant for the following 3 doses. The respective controls were immunized in the same manner using only adjuvant and PBS. Immunofluorescence studies showed intense fluorescence on the zona pellucida (ZP) of the oocytes isolated from immunized cats, as well as on the ZP of porcine and cat oocytes preincubated in immune sera. Sera from cats immunized with spZP inhibited in vitro binding was demonstrated in oocytes isolated from immunized group 1 cats. In vivo fertility data in Group 2 cats revealed that only 1 of 5 cats became pregnant, the one with the lowest anti-spZP titer. The results from the experiments reported above, suggest that in this preliminary study spZP can elicit antibodies with contraceptive potential in actively immunized female cats.     

N-glycosylation of zona glycoproteins during meiotic maturation is involved in sperm-zona pellucida interactions of porcine oocytes

The objective was to determine whether N-glycosylation of zona pellucida (ZP) glycoproteins occurred during meiotic maturation of porcine oocytes, and whether this had a role in fertilization. In the first of three experiments, carbohydrate residues in the ZP of in vitro matured porcine oocytes were blocked with various lectins and the influence of such blocking on sperm-ZP interactions was studied. The second experiment used a lectin-binding assay to determine whether the number of GlcNAc residues in ZP was changed by N-glycosylation during in vitro maturation (IVM) of porcine oocytes. The last experiment determined the effects of tunicamycin, a specific N-glycosylation inhibitor, for various intervals during IVM, on sperm-ZP interactions in porcine oocytes. The primary findings were that: 1) N-glycosylation of GlcNAc residues in porcine ZP occurred during the first 24 h of IVM; and 2) such glycosylation was indispensible for sperm-ZP interactions, e.g., number of sperm bound to ZP, acrosome-reacted sperm, sperm penetration rate, and level of polyspermy (P < 0.05). However, blocking N-glycosylation by tunicamycin treatment during IVM did not adversely influence the progression of oocytes to meiotic metaphase II and male pronucleus formation, indicating that this glycosylation was involved only in the initial stages of fertilization. We inferred that the increase in terminal GlcNAc residues in ZP glycoprotein through new N-glycosylation during the first 24 h of meiotic maturation played a critical role in porcine ZP acquiring the capacity to accept sperm.     

Native zona pellucida structure is required for completion of sperm acrosome reaction in porcine fertilization

In fertilization in vitro, the penetration rate of zona-intact porcine oocytes by cryopreserved epididymal spermatozoa was about 100% while that of zona-free oocytes was only 30%. Spermatozoa treated with calcium ionophore A23187 penetrated both zona-intact and zona-free oocytes at the rate of more than 90%. Treatment of spermatozoa with solubilized procine zonae pellucidae hardly induced acrosome reaction and did not increase the penetration rate. These results suggest that the structure of the zona is necessary for completion of acrosome reaction.     

人精子顶体膜蛋白的纯化及性质的研究

目的：提取和纯化与人卵透明带(HZP)作用更为密切的人精子膜蛋白,为改进精子包被抗原的制备方法和筛选避孕疫苗抗原提供科学依据。方法：将人精子膜蛋白混合液进行SDS-PAGE电泳,然后全胶电洗脱分剐收集蛋白溶液30管,以阳性管内的HZP特异精子蛋白溶液包被抗原进行AsAb检测。结果：与HZP结合的人精子膜蛋白有多种成分;全胶电洗脱后以第14管内成分之特异最强,其分子量范围为48～53KD。结论：以电洗脱转移法纯化筛选的人精子膜蛋白是特异的,与HZP具极强相关性,可以用该精子膜蛋白包被抗原进行AsAb研究。