Core 3 synthase is down-regulated in colon carcinoma and profoundly suppresses the metastatic potential of carcinoma cells.
The core 3 structure of the O-glycan, GlcNAcbeta1-3GalNAcalpha1-Ser/Thr, an important precursor in the biosynthesis of mucin-type glycoproteins, is synthesized by beta1,3-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase 6 (beta3Gn-T6; core 3 synthase). We generated an anti-beta3Gn-T6 mAb (G8-144 mAb) and performed immunohistochemical analyses. In normal stomach and colon, beta3Gn-T6 was strongly expressed in the Golgi region of epithelia. In contrast, its expression was markedly down-regulated in gastric and colorectal carcinomas. Tissue specimens from a familial adenomatous polyposis patient showed a clear correlation between the down-regulation of beta3Gn-T6 expression and the degree of dysplasia/neoplasia. In vitro, the level of beta3Gn-T6 transcript was increased according to the differentiation of Caco-2 cells. These results suggested that the expression of beta3Gn-T6 is closely regulated during differentiation and dedifferentiation. beta3Gn-T6 would be a useful marker for distinguishing between benign adenomas and premalignant lesions. HT1080 FP-10 cells stably transfected with the beta3Gn-T6 gene showed a decrease in the core 1 structure, Galbeta1,3GalNAcalpha1-Ser/Thr, probably due to competition between the core 1 synthase and core 3 synthase. The migration activity of the transfectants was markedly lower than that of mock transfectants in vitro, and lung metastasis after i.v. injection of the transfectants into nude mice was significantly suppressed. These findings indicated that the core structures of O-glycans are profoundly involved in the metastatic capacity of cancer cells.
Iwai
Toshie
T
Glycogene Function Team, Research Center for Glycoscience, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, OSL C-2, 1-1-1 Umezono, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8568, Japan.
Kudo
Takashi
T
Kawamoto
Risa
R
Kubota
Tomomi
T
Togayachi
Akira
A
Hiruma
Toru
T
Okada
Tomoko
T
Kawamoto
Toru
T
Morozumi
Kyoei
K
Narimatsu
Hisashi
H
D000818:Animals; D018938:Caco-2 Cells; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000502:physiology; D003110:Colonic Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology; D015179:Colorectal Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics; D015536:Down-Regulation; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008175:Lung Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics / Q000556:secondary; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D017351:N-Acetylglucosaminyltransferases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics; D014162:Transfection
D017351:N-Acetylglucosaminyltransferases; C454460:UDP-GlcNAc GalNAc-peptide beta1,3-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase