Preparation of Chitooligosaccharide-alditols by Hydrogenation with a Ruthenium Catalyst

The existence of glycosylated DNA-binding proteins was demonstrated in a whole cell extract from a filamentous fungus, Aspergillus oryzae. The proteins were specifically eluted from a DNA-cellulose column by the eluate containing shared double-stranded DNA and were detected by wheat germ agglutinin (WGA)-probing. The apparent molecular masses of these proteins on SDS-PAGE were 140 kDa, 115 kDa, 105kDa, 68 kDa, and 60 kDa. The labeling of the proteins by uridine 5′-diphosphate(UDP)-¹⁴C]galactose using galactosyltransferase showed the same electrophoretic pattern with the WGA-probing. The ¹⁴C]- galactose-labeled saccharides were released from the proteins by mild-base treatment but not by N-glycopeptidase F digestion, indicating the O-glycosidic linkage of the saccharide chain attachment to proteins. The ¹⁴C]galactose-labeled saccharides co-migrated with galactose-(β1 → 4)-N-acetylglucosaminitoI on a silica gel plate. Thus, it was seen that several proteins which had the DNA-binding activity were modified by N-acetylglucosamine monosaccharide through an O-glycosidic linkage in A. oryzae.