title: Biosynthesis of chondroitin sulfate. Purification of glucuronosyl transferase II and use of photoaffinity labeling for characterization of the enzyme as an 80-kDa protein.
abstract: A photoaffinity analogue, [beta-32P]5-azido-UDP-GlcA, was used to photolabel the enzymes that utilize UDP-GlcA in cartilage microsomes and rat liver microsomes. SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis of photolabeled cartilage microsomes, which are specialized in chondroitin sulfate synthesis, showed a major radiolabeled band at 80 kDa and other minor radiolabeled bands near 40 and 60 kDa. Rat liver microsomes, which are enriched for enzymes of detoxification by glucuronidation, had a different pattern with multiple major labeled bands near 50-60 and 35 kDa. To determine that the photolabeled 80-kDa protein is the GlcA transferase II, we have purified the enzyme from cartilage microsomes. This membrane-bound enzyme, involved in the transfer of GlcA residues to non-reducing terminal GalNAc residues of the chondroitin polymer, has now been solubilized, stabilized, and then purified greater than 1350-fold by sequential chromatography on Q-Sepharose, heparin-Sepharose, and WGA-agarose. The purified enzyme exhibited a conspicuous silver-stained protein band on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis that coincided with the major radiolabeled band of 80 kDa. SDS-polyacrylamide gel analysis of photoaffinity-labeled active fractions from the Q-Sepharose, heparin-Sepharose, and WGA-agarose also indicated only the single radiolabeled band at 80 kDa. Intensity of photolabeling in each of the fractions examined coincided with enzyme activity. The photolabeling of this 80-kDa protein was saturable with the photoprobe and could be inhibited by the addition of UDP-GlcA prior to the addition of the photoprobe. Thus, the photolabeling with [beta-32P]5-azido-UDP-GlcA has identified the GlcA transferase II as an 80-kDa protein. The purified enzyme was capable of transferring good amounts of GlcA residues to chondroitin-derived pentasaccharide with negligible transfer to pentasaccharides derived from hyaluronan or heparan.
authors.affiliation: Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital, Bedford, Massachusetts 01730, USA.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Sugumaran
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Katsman
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Sunthankar
authors.forename: R R
authors.initials: RR
authors.lastname: Drake
mesh_terms: D000345:Affinity Labels; D000818:Animals; D002809:Chondroitin Sulfates / Q000096:biosynthesis*; D016695:Glycosyltransferases / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000378:metabolism; D008862:Microsomes, Liver / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats
chemical_list: D000345:Affinity Labels; D002809:Chondroitin Sulfates; D016695:Glycosyltransferases