title: Carbohydrate composition of variant-specific surface antigen glycoproteins from Trypanosoma brucei.
abstract: The carbohydrate of variant-specific surface antigen glycoproteins from bloodstream forms of 13 cloned variants of Trypanosoma brucei was analyzed by gas-liquid chromatography. The glycoproteins contained from 6 to 17% carbohydrate by weight, and all contained the same 4 sugars: mannose, galactose, glucose, and glucosamine (probably as N-acetylglucosamine). The glycoprotein from variant 048, strain 427 contained (+20%) 11 mannose, 4 galactose, 4 glucose, and 5 glucosamine residues/mole of glycoprotein (molecular weight 65,000). Glucose was an intergral component of the glycoproteins, not dissociable by sodium dodecyl sulphate, 8 M urea, or 1 M acetic acid. Some of the glucose was dissociated by trichloroacetic acid. Most of the glycoproteins formed precipitin with concanavalin A in Ouchterlony double diffusion, but none formed such bands with wheat germ agglutinin or Ricinus communis lectin (molecular weight 120, 000).
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000941:Antigens / Q000032:analysis*; D002241:Carbohydrates / Q000032:analysis*; D002849:Chromatography, Gas; D005690:Galactose / Q000032:analysis; D005944:Glucosamine / Q000032:analysis; D005947:Glucose / Q000032:analysis; D006023:Glycoproteins / Q000032:analysis*; D008358:Mannose / Q000032:analysis; D014346:Trypanosoma brucei brucei / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000941:Antigens; D002241:Carbohydrates; D006023:Glycoproteins; D005947:Glucose; D005944:Glucosamine; D008358:Mannose; D005690:Galactose