scholarly journals Metabolism of Cartilage Proteoglycans in Health and Disease

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Demitrios H. Vynios

Cartilage proteoglycans are extracellular macromolecules with complex structure, composed of a core protein onto which a variable number of glycosaminoglycan chains are attached. Their biosynthesis at the glycosaminoglycan level involves a great number of sugar transferases well-orchestrated in Golgi apparatus. Similarly, their degradation, either extracellular or intracellular in lysosomes, involves a large number of hydrolases. A deficiency or malfunction of any of the enzymes participating in cartilage proteoglycan metabolism may lead to severe disease state. This review summarizes the findings regarding this topic.

1986 ◽  
Vol 236 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
T T Glant ◽  
K Mikecz ◽  
P J Roughley ◽  
E Buzás ◽  
A R Poole

Monoclonal antibodies were prepared that recognize different age-related epitopes on proteoglycan subunits of high buoyant density isolated from human epiphysial and articular cartilages. Antibody EFG-4 (IgG1) recognizes a proteinase-sensitive segment associated with the core protein. Antibody BCD-4 (IgG1) reacts with keratan sulphate bound to core protein. Both epitopes are minimally expressed in foetal cartilage and increase with age after birth to become maximally expressed in adult cartilage by about 30 years of age. In contrast, monoclonal antibody alpha HFPG-846 (IgM) recognizes a core-protein-related epitope that is maximally expressed in young foetal cartilage, declines up to birth and thereafter and is almost absent after about 30 years of age. Antibody alpha HFPG-846 was used to isolate by immuno-affinity chromatography two subpopulations of proteoglycan subunits from a 16-year-old-human cartilage proteoglycan subunit preparation. Only the antibody-unbound population showed a significant reaction with antibodies EGF-4 and BCD-4. The amino acid and carbohydrate compositions of these proteoglycan fractions were different, and one (antibody-bound) resembled those of foetal and the other (antibody-unbound) resembled those of adult proteoglycans isolated from 24-27-week-old-foetal and 52-56-year-old-adult cartilage respectively. These observations demonstrate that human cartilages contain at least two chemically and immunochemically distinct populations of proteoglycans, the proportions and content of which are age-dependent. It is likely that these populations represent the products of different genes, though their heterogeneity may be compounded by the result of different post-translation modifications.


1988 ◽  
Vol 253 (1) ◽  
pp. 175-185 ◽  
Author(s):  
M Mörgelin ◽  
M Paulsson ◽  
T E Hardingham ◽  
D Heinegård ◽  
J Engel

Aggregates formed by the interaction of cartilage proteoglycan monomers and fragments thereof with hyaluronate were studied by electron microscopy by use of rotary shadowing [Wiedemann, Paulsson, Timpl, Engel & Heinegård (1984) Biochem. J. 224, 331-333]. The differences in shape and packing of the proteins bound along the hyaluronate strand in aggregates formed in the presence and in the absence of link protein were examined in detail. The high resolution of the method allowed examination of the involvement in hyaluronate binding of the globular core-protein domains G1, G2 and G3 [Wiedemann, Paulsson, Timpl, Engel & Heinegård (1984) Biochem. J. 224, 331-333; Paulsson, Mörgelin, Wiedemann, Beardmore-Gray, Dunham, Hardingham, Heinegård, Timpl & Engel (1987) Biochem. J. 245, 763-772]. Fragments comprising the globular hyaluronate-binding region G1 form complexes with hyaluronate with an appearance of necklace-like structures, statistically interspaced by free hyaluronate strands. The closest centre-to-centre distance found between adjacent G1 domains was 12 nm. Another fragment comprising the binding region G1 and the adjacent second globular domain G2 attaches to hyaluronate only by one globule. Also, the core protein obtained by chondroitinase digestion of proteoglycan monomer binds only by domain G1, with domain G3 furthest removed from the hyaluronate. Globule G1 shows a statistical distribution along the hyaluronate strands. In contrast, when link protein is added, binding is no longer random, but instead uninterrupted densely packed aggregates are formed.


1987 ◽  
Vol 262 (36) ◽  
pp. 17757-17767 ◽  
Author(s):  
K Doege ◽  
M Sasaki ◽  
E Horigan ◽  
J R Hassell ◽  
Y Yamada

1991 ◽  
Vol 25 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 311-320 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen E. Haynesworth ◽  
David A. Carrino ◽  
Arnold I. Caplan

1992 ◽  
Vol 263 (4) ◽  
pp. L413-L429 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. C. Rose

Mucins, major components of the extracellular mucus blanket that protect and lubricate mammalian epithelia, are high-molecular-mass glycoconjugates (154 to > or = 7,000 kDa) with hundreds of oligosaccharide chains in O-glycosidic linkages to a protein backbone. The apparent expression of more than one type of oligosaccharide core structure in mucins isolated from pathological material may reflect either inherent limitations in analysis, disease-related alterations in parameters affecting glycosylation and post-translational modifications (e.g., nucleotide-sugar concentrations, expression of specific glycosyltransferases, rates of transport through the endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi) or the activation of mucin protein genes that are more highly expressed in disease states with different glycosylation patterns. Recent studies have revealed the existence of a family of at least four human mucin proteins; MUC1, MUC2, MUC3, MUC4, each of which contains a variable number of tandem repeats that differ in sequence and size. Full-length sequences of cDNA clones encoding human mucin proteins are currently available only for MUC1 which, in contrast to most airway and intestinal mucins, is membrane associated and not secreted. Current information on mucin oligosaccharides and proteins is reviewed herein. More detailed knowledge of the protein and oligosaccharide structures of mucins will be important in identifying specific role(s) in health and disease, i.e., in the physiological functions of mucus.


1991 ◽  
Vol 273 (2) ◽  
pp. 283-288 ◽  
Author(s):  
C C Clark ◽  
C F Richards ◽  
R V Iozzo

Incorporation of [35S]sulphate by cultures of matrix-free cells from chick embryo sterna in the presence of the glutamine analogue 6-diazo-5-oxo-L-norleucine (0.58 mM) was inhibited in a time-dependent manner to less than 15% of that in control cultures after 2 h. Characterization of the major cartilage proteoglycan synthesized under these conditions showed that it contained few, if any, normal-sized chondroitin sulphate chains and only about half of the normal complement of substituted serine residues. Subsequent addition of D-glucosamine hydrochloride (final concn. 2 mM) resulted in a time-dependent recovery of [35S]sulphate incorporation to 90% of control cultures after 2 h, but restored the chondroitin sulphate chains to normal size within 15 min. On the basis of these results, it is concluded that a 2 h preincubation is necessary to deplete the chondrocytes of the endogenous supply of UDP-N-acetyl-D-glucosamine required for optimal glycoconjugate synthesis, and that this situation results in the synthesis of a chondroitin sulphate proteoglycan with significantly altered properties, owing to the paucity of glycosaminoglycan chains; however, this condition is completely reversible if the D-glucosamine pool is repleted.


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