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Biomedical subjects

N Sathyamoorthy

Publications and source records attributed to N Sathyamoorthy.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

Evidence that specific high mannose structures directly regulate multiple cellular activities.

Previous studies have demonstrated that much of the immunomodulatory activity of the glycoprotein uromodulin can be attributed to attached oligosaccharides. Structural studies of isolated and purified saccharides derived from uromodulin suggest that the structure Man6GlcNAc2-asn can inhibit in vitro assays of antigen driven T cell proliferation. Based on these observations, we isolated a series of high mannose glycopeptides from a variety of natural sources and tested them for biological activity in a number of assays. We found that purified mannose rich glycopeptides are able to activate the hexose monophosphate (HMP) shunt, induce prostaglandin synthesis, and directly stimulate IL-1 synthesis. These in vitro effects appear to have in vivo counterparts. Thus in a species-restricted fashion, high mannose compounds are able to directly activate a delayed mononuclear cell infiltrate after intradermal injection. Our data suggest that specific mannose oligosaccharides may activate as well as inhibit cellular immune responses at several different levels. These findings support the hypothesis that specific saccharide structures could participate in the physiologic regulation of the immune response.

Animals

Evidence that specific high-mannose oligosaccharides can directly inhibit antigen-driven T-cell responses.

Uromodulin is an 85 Kd immunosuppressive glycoprotein originally isolated from human pregnancy urine. It is unique in that most of its biologic activity can be attributed to attached oligosaccharides. Purified immunomodulatory oligosaccharides from uromodulin have been structurally characterized using 1H-NMR spectroscopy and shown to be Man6-7GlcNAc2(M6,M7). Based on these observations, we isolated high-mannose N-type oligosaccharides and glycopeptides from ovalbumin, soybean agglutinin, and yeast mannan and show that these high-mannose compounds directly inhibit in vitro antigen-driven T-cell proliferation from millimolar to nanomolar concentrations. The most active compound was a core mannose oligosaccharide derived from yeast mannan, M9(y), which acts to block early events required for normal antigen processing/presentation. These data emphasize the potential functional role of carbohydrate structure in regulating the human immune response.

Antigens

IL-2, a lectin with specificity for high mannose glycopeptides.

Utilizing a solid phase binding assay, we have demonstrated that rIL-2 binds with high affinity to the human urinary glycoprotein uromodulin. This binding is specifically inhibited by the saccharides diacetylchitobiose and Man(alpha 1-3)(Man(alpha 1-6]Man-O-methyl and by the high mannose glycopeptides Man5GlcNAc2-R and Man6GlcNAc2-R, but not by Man9GlcNAc2-R. rIL-2 also binds OVA, a glycoprotein which contains approximately 50% high mannose chains at a single glycosylation site, and to yeast mannan. This binding is inhibited by the same battery of saccharides which inhibit the binding to uromodulin. The conclusion that rIL-2 is a lectin is further supported by the observation that the sequence of IL-2 shares 27% homology with a 33-residue sequence of the carbohydrate-binding domain of human mannose-binding protein. The potential physiologic relevance of the carbohydrate binding activity is further elucidated by studies which show that 1) binding of soluble rIL-2 to immobilized uromodulin is enhanced at a pH of 4 to5 in the presence of divalent cations, and 2) neither uromodulin nor the high mannose glycopeptide Man5GlcNAc2Asn blocks the binding of rIL-2 to the IL-2R. Thus the carbohydrate-binding site of rIL-2 is distinct from the cell surface receptor-binding site, and might function preferentially in acidic microenvironments.

Amino Acid Sequence

Purification and characterization of a novel mycolic acid exchange enzyme from Mycobacterium smegmatis.

We have isolated and purified to homogeneity an alpha,alpha'-trehalose 6-monomycolate:alpha,alpha'-trehalose mycolyltransferase (trehalose mycolyltransferase) from Mycobacterium smegmatis that catalyzes the exchange of a mycolyl group between trehalose, trehalose 6-monomycolate (TM), and trehalose 6,6'-dimycolate (TD). This enzyme was prominent in M. smegmatis and it catalyzed the following reactions. TM + [14C]trehalose in equilibrium [14C]TM + trehalose [14C]TM + TM in equilibrium [14C]TD + trehalose This enzyme was purified by (i) ammonium sulfate fractionation, (ii) QAE-Sephadex A-50 column chromatography, (iii) gel filtration on a Sephadex G-75 column, and (iv) SP-Sephadex C-50 column chromatography. The purified protein yielded a single band on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, and its molecular weight was estimated to be 25,000. This enzyme was a glycoprotein, had no cofactor requirement, and was highly specific for alpha,alpha'-trehalose as the mycolate acceptor. It was less specific for the acyl donor group since the palmitoyl group in trehalose 6-monopalmitate was easily exchangeable. There was no TM acylhydrolase activity in the purified enzyme, suggesting that it is probably associated with the anabolic pathway of mycolic acid metabolism. We postulate the formation of a mycolyl-enzyme intermediate in this reaction. Such an intermediate could play a central role in the transfer of mycolic acid to form the prominent cell wall components of mycobacterial TD and possibly murein-arabinogalactan-mycolate.

Acyltransferases

Purification and characterization of C28-55 fatty acids from Mycobacterium smegmatis.

The nonmycolic C16 to C55 fatty acids obtained from Mycobacterium smegmatis ATCC 356 by saponification were enriched with respect to the C28 to C55 acids by successive chromatography on silicic acid and Sephadex LH-20 columns. These partially purified fatty acids were then derivatized to the p-bromophenacyl ester and further fractionated by argentation thin-layer chromatography and reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography into their individual components. The esters were characterized by electron impact mass spectrometry. Two structural series of C28:1 to C42:1 and C45:2 to C55:2 fatty acids were identified as possible precursors of the monoenyl and dienyl mycolic acids, respectively. These acids were structurally related to the alpha-alkylhydroxyl group of the corresponding mycolic acid. The results suggest that these C28 to C55 fatty acids (meromycolic acids) of M. smegmatis might be precursors of mycolic acids.

Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid