J. Biol. Chem., Vol. 263, Issue 36, 19303-19317, Dec, 1988
Regulation of glycosylation. The influence of protein structure on N- linked oligosaccharide processing
SC Hubbard
Center for Cancer Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge 02139.
The Sindbis virus glycoproteins, E1 and E2, comprise a useful model system
for evaluating the effects of local protein structure on the processing of
N-linked oligosaccharides by Golgi enzymes. The conversion of oligomannose
to N-acetyllactosamine (complex) oligosaccharides is hindered to different
extents at the four glycosylation sites, so that the complex/oligomannose
ratio decreases in the order E1-Asn139 greater than E2-Asn196 greater than
E1-Asn245 greater than E2-Asn318. The processing steps most susceptible to
interference were deduced from the oligosaccharide compositions at hindered
sites in virus from baby hamster kidney cells (BHK), chick embryo
fibroblasts (CEF), and normal and hamster sarcoma virus (HSV)- transformed
hamster fibroblasts (Nil-8). Persistence of Man6-9GlcNAc2 was taken to
indicate interference with alpha 2-mannosidase(s) I (alpha- mannosidase I),
Man5GlcNAc2, with UDP-GlcNAc:alpha-D-mannoside beta 1---
-2-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase I (GlcNAc transferase I), and unbisected
hybrid glycans, with GlcNAc transferase I-dependent alpha 3(alpha
6)-mannosidase (alpha-mannosidase II). Taken together, the results indicate
that all four sites acquire a precursor oligosaccharide with equally high
efficiency, but alpha-mannosidase I, GlcNAc transferase I, and
alpha-mannosidase II are all impeded at E2- Asn318 and, to a lesser extent,
at E1-Asn245. In contrast, sialic acid and galactose transfer to hybrid
glycans (in BHK cells) is virtually quantitative even at E2-Asn318.
E2-Asn318 carried no complex oligosaccharides, but the structures of those
at E1-Asn245 indicate almost complete GlcNAc transfer by
UDP-GlcNAc:alpha-D-mannoside beta 1-- --2-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase
II (GlcNAc transferase II), galactosylation, and sialylation. Because the
E2-Asn318 and E1-Asn245 glycans have previously been shown to be less
accessible to a steric probe than those at E2-Asn196 or E1-Asn139, a simple
explanation for these results would be that alpha-mannosidase I, GlcNAc
transferase I, and alpha-mannosidase II are more susceptible to steric
hindrance than are the later processing steps examined. Finally, in
addition to these site-specific effects, the overall extent of viral
oligosaccharide processing varied with host and cellular growth status. For
example, alpha-mannosidase I processing is more complete in BHK cells
compared to CEF, and in confluent Nil-8 cells compared to subconfluent or
HSV- transformed Nil-8 cells.