title: Structural analysis of the human galectin-9 N-terminal carbohydrate recognition domain reveals unexpected properties that differ from the mouse orthologue.
abstract: Galectins are a family of beta-galactoside-binding lectins that contain a conserved carbohydrate recognition domain (CRD). They exhibit high affinities for small beta-galactosides as well as variable binding specificities for complex glycoconjugates. Structural and biochemical analyses of the mechanism governing specific carbohydrate recognition provide a useful template to elucidate the function of these proteins. Here we report the crystal structures of the human galectin-9 N-terminal CRD (NCRD) in the presence of lactose and Forssman pentasaccharide. Mouse galectin-9 NCRD, the structure of which was previously solved by our group, forms a non-canonical dimer in both the crystal state and in solution. Human galectin-9 NCRD, however, exists as a monomer in crystals, despite a high sequence identity to the mouse homologue. Comparative frontal affinity chromatography analysis of the mouse and human galectin-9 NCRDs revealed different carbohydrate binding specificities, with disparate affinities for complex glycoconjugates. Human galectin-9 NCRD exhibited a high affinity for Forssman pentasaccharide; the association constant for mouse galectin-9 NCRD was 100-fold less than that observed for the human protein. The combination of structural data with mutational studies demonstrated that non-conserved amino acid residues on the concave surface were important for determination of target specificities. The human galectin-9 NCRD exhibited greater inhibition of cell proliferation than the mouse NCRD. We discuss the biochemical and structural differences between highly homologous proteins from different species.
authors.affiliation: Structural Biology Research Center, Photon Factory, Institute of Materials Structure Science, High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK), 1-1 Oho, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0801, Japan.
authors.forename: Masamichi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nagae
authors.forename: Nozomu
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nishi
authors.forename: Sachiko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nakamura-Tsuruta
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hirabayashi
authors.forename: Soichi
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wakatsuki
authors.forename: Ryuichi
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kato
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D019943:Amino Acid Substitution; D000818:Animals; D001665:Binding Sites; D002240:Carbohydrate Sequence; D002241:Carbohydrates / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000494:pharmacology; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects; D017124:Conserved Sequence; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D037161:Galectins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D005982:Glutathione Transferase / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D019169:Jurkat Cells; D016393:Lymphoma, B-Cell / Q000473:pathology; D051379:Mice; D008956:Models, Chemical; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011485:Protein Binding; D011487:Protein Conformation; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid; D014633:Valine / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D002241:Carbohydrates; D037161:Galectins; C105032:LGALS9 protein, human; D011993:Recombinant Fusion Proteins; C508186:galectin 9, mouse; D005982:Glutathione Transferase; D014633:Valine