Histochemical studies of intestinal epithelial goblet cell glycoproteins during the development of the human foetus

Summary Histochemical studies performed on specimens of intestine from 12 to 37-week human foetuses showed that the epithelial glycoproteins of the goblet cells of the small intestine are non-sulphated sialoglycoproteins containing neutral sugar (hexose, 6-deoxy hexose or N-acetyl hexosamine residues with Periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) reactive vicinal diols), sialic acids without O-acyl substituents, smaller and variable quantities of sialic acids with O-acyl substituents at positions C8 or C9 (or with two or three side chain substituents) and O-acyl sugars (neutral sugars with an ester substituent blocking PAS reactivity). In the lower small intestine glycoproteins containing 8 (or 9)-O-acyl sialic acids are first observed in goblet cells at the tips of the villi. As the foetus matures their quantity increases and they are found in goblet cells located along the length of the villi. Smaller quantities of O-acyl sialic acids and traces of O-acyl sugars occur in the goblet cells of the upper small intestine. The colonic goblet cells contain sulphosialoglycoproteins of two types. The first type, found in the majority of specimens, contains O-sulphate ester, neutral sugar, O-acyl sugars and 8 (or 9)-O-acyl sialic acids. The second type contains O-sulphate ester, neutral sugars, and sialic acids which are either without side chain O-acyl substituents or are a mixture of such acids and 8 (or 9)-O-acyl sialic acids; O-acyl sugars are reduced or absent. The degree of sulphation of the foetal colonic goblet cell epithelial glycoproteins differs with the region of the colon, the level of the crypt and the gestational age of the foetus in a manner consistent with that described by Lev & Orlic (1974). The detection of O-acyl sugars in foetal intestinal glycoproteins adds to the known examples of such sugars and strengthens the suggestion that they are a normal constituent of colonic epithelial glycoproteins.Part of this work was presented at the 32nd meeting of the Canadian Federation of Biological Sciences, Calgary, Alberta, June 1989 (abstract # 336).