The Saccharomyces cerevisiae protein Mnn10p/Bed1p is a subunit of a Golgi mannosyltransferase complex

In the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae many of the N-linked glycans on cell wall and periplasmic proteins are modified by the addition of mannan, a large mannose-containing polysaccharide. Mannan comprises a backbone of approximately 50 alpha-1,6-linked mannoses to which are attached many branches consisting of alpha-1,2-linked and alpha-1,3-linked mannoses. The initiation and subsequent elongation of the mannan backbone is performed by two complexes of proteins in the cis Golgi. In this study we show that the product of the MNN10/BED1 gene is a component of one of these complexes, that which elongates the backbone. Analysis of interactions between the proteins in this complex shows that Mnn10p, and four previously characterized proteins (Anp1p, Mnn9p, Mnn11p, and Hoc1p) are indeed all components of the same large structure. Deletion of either Mnn10p, or its homologue Mnn11p, results in defects in mannan synthesis in vivo, and analysis of the enzymatic activity of the complexes isolated from mutant strains suggests that Mnn10p and Mnn11p are responsible for the majority of the alpha-1, 6-polymerizing activity of the complex.