title: Identification of a heparin binding domain of the neural cell adhesion molecule N-CAM using synthetic peptides.
abstract: The neural cell adhesion molecule (N-CAM) plays an integral role in cell interactions during neural development, with the binding of heparan sulfate proteoglycan to the amino-terminal region of N-CAM being required for N-CAM function. In the present study we have used synthetic peptides (HBD-1 and HBD-2), derived from the primary amino acid sequence of rat N-CAM, to identify the region of N-CAM that binds heparan sulfate. The 28 amino acid HBD-1 synthetic peptide was shown to bind both [3H]heparin and dissociated retinal cells. Retinal cells also attach to a substratum of HBD-2 peptide, but fail to bind to a control peptide containing a scrambled amino acid sequence of HBD-2. The HBD-2 peptide also inhibits retinal cell adhesion to N-CAM, demonstrating the physiological importance of the amino acid sequence encoded by the HBD peptide. These data therefore permit the localization of a heparin binding domain to a 17 amino acid region of immunoglobulin-like loop 2.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston 29425.
authors.forename: G J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Cole
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Akeson
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001665:Binding Sites; D002448:Cell Adhesion; D015816:Cell Adhesion Molecules, Neuronal / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D002642:Chick Embryo; D004247:DNA / Q000235:genetics; D006493:Heparin / Q000378:metabolism*; D006497:Heparan Sulfate / Q000378:metabolism; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D007700:Kinetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010455:Peptides / Q000138:chemical synthesis*; D012160:Retina / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D015816:Cell Adhesion Molecules, Neuronal; D004247:DNA; D006493:Heparin; D006497:Heparan Sulfate; D010455:Peptides