Partial purification and characterization of taurodeoxycholate 7α-monooxygenase

Taurodeoxycholate 7α-monooxygenase was partially purified from rat liver microsomes. The enzyme was solubilized with cholate, fractionated with polyethylene glycol and chromatographed on a Sepharose 4B column with cholate as ligand. The enzyme activity was eluted from the column into the fraction eluted with 50 mM phosphate buffer containing cholate and KCl, whereas the benzphetamine demethylase activity was eluted in the non-bound fraction. Thus it was established that both enzymes are different entities. The taurodeoxycholate 7α-monooxygenase activity was reconstituted from the partially purified cytochrome P-450, highly purified NADPH-cytochrome P-450 reductase, dilauroylglyceryl-3-phosphorylcholine and NADPH.     

Comparative study of the mucin-type sugar chains of human chorionic gonadotropin present in the urine of patients with trophoblastic diseases and healthy pregnant women

Human chorionic gonadotropins (hCGs) highly purified from the urine of patients with trophoblastic diseases and of healthy pregnant women contain approximately four mucin-type sugar chains in one molecule. The structures of these sugar chains were studied comparatively by using a new sensitive method to obtain mucin-type sugar chains quantitatively as radioactive oligosaccharides from a small amount of glycoproteins. The mucin-type sugar chains of all hCGs include sialylated and nonsialylated Gal beta 1----3GalNAc and Gal beta 1----4GlcNAc beta 1----6(Gal beta 1----3)GalNAc. In the case of normal hCG and hydatidiform mole hCG, oligosaccharides containing the tetrasaccharide core occupy approximately 10% of the total mucin-type sugar chains. The ratio of the tetrasaccharide containing oligosaccharides is increased prominently to approximately 60% in choriocarcinoma hCG. The proportion in invasive mole hCG was also increased, but less than the proportion of choriocarcinoma hCG.     

Purification of almond emulsin alpha-L-fucosidase I by affinity chromatography.

An affinity chromatographic method to purify α-l-fucosidase I from almond emulsin was developed. A derivative of lacto-N-fucopentaose II, ?-aminocaproyl-lacto-N-fucopentaosylamine, was coupled to sepharose 4B and packed in a column. By adopting this column for affinity chromatography, the enzyme was purified a hundredfold. The enzyme preparation was free from any other exoglycosidases which act on natural substrates.     

The asparagine-linked sugar chains of human follicle-stimulating hormone

The asparagine-linked sugar chains of human follicle-stimulating hormone (hFSH) were liberated as radioactive oligosaccharides from the polypeptide moiety by hydrazinolysis followed by N-acetylation and NaB3H4 reduction. Ninety-five percent of the oligosaccharides were acidic and all were converted to a mixture of neutral oligosaccharides on sialidase treatment. The mixture of neutral oligosaccharides was subjected to sequential immobilized lectin column chromatography on E-PHA-agarose, AAL-Sepharose, and Con A-Sepharose, and six fractions were obtained. The results of sequential exoglycosidase digestion of each oligosaccharide and methylation analysis led us to propose that the asparagine-linked sugar chains of hFSH are a mixture of complex-type bi-, tri-, and tetraantennary sialylated sugar chains with and without a fucose residue linked at the C-6 position of the proximal N-acetylglucosamine. Some of these sugar chains contain bisecting N-acetylglucosamine residue.     

Cloning and expression of a functional fucose-specific lectin from an orange peel mushroom, Aleuria aurantia

Aleuria aurantia lectin (AAL) shows sugar-binding specificity for L-fucose. A λgt11 expression library was constructed from A. aurantia poly(A) RNA and screened with a polyclonal antiserum directed against AAL. An immunopositive clone carrying 1.3-kb EcoRI fragment was obtained. The fragment encoded AAL, but lacked a nucleotide sequence corresponding to the two amino-terminal amino acids. The 5′-terminal part of the fragment was replaced with a chemically synthesized DNA fragment and inserted into an expression vector to yield a plasmid pKA-1. Escherichia coli carrying pKA-1 expressed functional AAL and the recombinant AAL showed the same immunological properties as those of natural AAL.     

Structural study of the sugar chains of human platelet thrombospondin

The asparagine-linked sugar chains of human platelet thrombospondin were released as oligosaccharides by hydrazinolysis. About 12 mol of sugar chains was released from one thrombospondin molecule. This was converted to radioactive oligosaccharides by sodium borotritide reduction after N-acetylation, and separated into one neutral and four acidic fractions by paper electrophoresis. More than 90% of the oligosaccharides were recovered in the acidic fraction. The acidic oligosaccharides were mostly converted to neutral oligosaccharides by sialidase treatment, indicating that they are sialyl derivatives. The neutral and sialidase-treated acidic oligosaccharides were further fractionated by Bio-Gel P-4 column chromatography. Structural study of each oligosaccharide by sequential exoglycosidase digestion and methylation analysis revealed that the thrombospondin contains mono-, bi-, tri-, and tetraantennary complex-type sugar chains in addition to a small amount of high-mannose type. Approximately 70% of the complex-type sugar chains was fucosylated at asparagine-linked N-acetylglucosamine residue and 19% of the biantennary complex-type sugar chains was bisected.     

Carbohydrate binding specificity of immobilized Allomyrina dichotoma lectin II

The carbohydrate binding specificity of Allomyrina dichotoma lectin II was investigated by analyzing the behavior of various complex type oligosaccharides and human milk oligosaccharides on an A. dichotoma lectin II-agarose column. Basically, the lectin interacts with the Gal beta 1----4GlcNAc group. Substitution of their terminal galactose residues by Neu5Ac alpha 2----6 will enhance their affinity to the lectin. By contraries, substitution at the C-2 or C-3 position of their terminal galactose with other sugars including sialic acid deprives their affinity to the lectin. With this characteristic, the immobilized lectin column can be used to separate complex type oligosaccharides with the Neu5Ac alpha 2----6Gal beta 1----4GlcNAc group from their isomeric oligosaccharides with the Neu5Ac alpha 2----3Gal beta 1----4GlcNAc group, where Neu5Ac is N-acetylneuraminic acid.     

Protein glycosylation.

Glycan structures can modulate the biological properties and functions of glycoproteins. This has been shown by investigation of the biological activities and glycan structures of several recombinant glycoproteins. Glycan structures of glycoproteins differ according to the species and tissue producing them, and selection of an appropriate host-cell type can generate recombinant glycoproteins with new characteristics.     

Structures of sugar chains of human kidney gamma-glutamyltranspeptidase

gamma-Glutamyltranspeptidase purified from human kidneys contains 4-5 asparagine-linked sugar chains in each molecule. The sugar chains were released from the polypeptide portion of the enzyme by hydrazinolysis as oligosaccharides and separated by paper electrophoresis into one neutral and two acidic fractions. By sequential exoglycosidase digestion and methylation analysis, the neutral fraction, which comprised 69% of total oligosaccharides, was shown to be a mixture of bisected bi- and triantennary complex-type sugar chains with and without a fucose on the proximal N-acetylglucosamine residue and with Gal beta 1----4GlcNAc and/or Gal beta 1----4(Fuc alpha 1----3)GlcNAc groups in their outer chain moieties. The acidic oligosaccharide fractions were mixtures of mono- and disialyl derivatives of bisected triantennary complex-type oligosaccharides with Gal beta 1----4GlcNAc and/or Gal beta 1----4(Fuc alpha 1----3)GlcNAc group in their outer chain moieties. Some of the outer chains of the acidic oligosaccharides were considered to be sialylated X-antigenic structures.     

Carbohydrates of lysosomal enzymes secreted by Tetrahymena pyriformis

The carbohydrate structures of acid phosphatase and alpha-glucosidase secreted into culture medium by Tetrahymena pyriformis strain W were studied. Their asparagine-linked sugar chains were quantitatively liberated as radioactive oligosaccharides from their polypeptide moieties by controlled hydrazinolysis followed by N-acetylation and NaB3H4 reduction. The approximate amounts of total sugar chains liberated from 1 mol each of acid phosphatase and alpha-glucosidase were 6 and 4 mol, respectively. Paper electrophoresis revealed that only neutral oligosaccharides were obtained from both enzymes. The oligosaccharide fraction from acid phosphatase was separated into seven components by Bio-Gel P-4 column chromatography while that from alpha-glucosidase was resolved into three components. The structures of these oligosaccharides were determined by sequential glycosidase digestion in combination with methylation analysis. The sugar chains of the two enzymes can be primarily classified as high mannose-type oligosaccharides. However, they have the following characteristic features: 1) their common core is not the usual Man5 . GlcNAc2 structure, it is Man3 . GlcNAc2; 2) some of the sugar chains of acid phosphatase have 1 approximately 3 glucose residues linked to the nonreducing terminal Man alpha 1----2 residue. The structural characteristics of the sugar moieties of the two enzymes indicate that they might be produced by the so-called "alternate pathway," in which lipid-linked Glc3 . Man5 . GlcNAc2 functions as an oligosaccharide donor.