Heterogeneity of human luteinizing hormone. Effect of neuraminidase treatment on biologically active hormone and α- and β-subunits

1987 ◽  
Vol 114 (4) ◽  
pp. 577-583 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. A. van Ginkel ◽  
J. G. Loeber

Abstract. By preparative isoelectric focussing of a highly purified LH preparation in a sucrose density gradient, four biologically active LH components were isolated. The effect of neuraminidase treatment of each component on the charge heterogeneity was studied by isoelectric focussing followed by in vitro biological and immunochemical techniques. The number of biologically active components with pI-values > 7 containing varying amounts of sialic acid is at least six. The pI-value of the most basic (= asialo) LH component was 9.26. The two most basic components were not present in our preparation (NM 14) before neuraminidase treatment. It is concluded that the difference between the pI-values of LH components is caused by a difference in sialic acid content. When an intact LH component was incubated with neuraminidase there was detectable dissociation owing to the elevated temperature (37°C) and necessary acidic conditions of the incubation. Under these conditions we found the same subunits as we have described before. The most basic α-subunit had a pI-value of 9.29, whereas two β-subunits with pI > 9 were observed at pI 9.26 and pI 9.9. On the other hand, when an LH component was forced to dissociate by incubation at 56°C prior to neuraminidase digestion, two additional α-subunits were found. From this it is concluded that in the intact LH molecule, some sialic acid residues are poorer substrates for neuraminidase action than in the free subunits.

1989 ◽  
Vol 121 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. A. van Ginkel ◽  
J. G. Loeber

Abstract. The charge heterogeneity of an LH preparation containing relatively acidic components (LH Type I) was studied. Four biological active components, with pI-values of 5.04, 5.60, 6.06 and 6.57 were detected. A total of four different α-subunits, with pI-values of 4.49, 4.79, 5.16 and 6.02 could be detected after incubation at 37°C. With the exception of the most acidic component all these α-subunits were also present in earlier studied LH Type II preparations. After neuraminidase treatment a strong shift to more basic components was observed, resulting in a population of components similar to the one detected in LH Type II preparations. The β-subunits detected were very different from those observed in Type II preparations. All six components detected had pI-values < 7.5. Upon incubation at 56°C these subunits appeared to be unstable resulting in a shift to more basic pI-values, these pI-values being very similar to those of β-subunits observed before in Type II preparations. After neuraminidase treatment, the pH values of the population of β-subunits became identical to those of the population in LH Type II. From these results it is concluded that the major charge difference between LH Type I and Type II is located in the β-subunits. This difference cannot be explained completely by differences in sialic acid content, but may also be due to heat labile charged groups such as sulphate.


1987 ◽  
Vol 114 (4) ◽  
pp. 572-576 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. A. van Ginkel ◽  
J. G. Loeber

Abstract. The charge heterogeneity of three international reference preparations containing biologically active human luteinizing hormone (LH) or its free α-or β-subunits, respectively, was investigated with isoelectric focussing in sucrose density gradients. The immunoreactive profiles throughout the pH-gradient were assessed with radioimmunoassay (RIA) systems specific for intact, i.e. undissociated, LH or free α- or β-subunits. For the preparation of intact LH (MRC 68/40), two peaks were found at pH = 7.69 and 8.05; for the α-subunit preparation (NIBSC 78/554), the peak values were 4.76, 5.04, 5.94, 6.70, 6.96, 7.35, 8.02, 8.72 and 9.32; and for the β-subunit preparation (NIBSC 78/556), the values were 7.60, 8.40, 8.55 and 9.61. These results are in excellent agreement with those obtained for a highly purified LH preparation (NM 14) which was prepared by one of us and on which we have reported earlier. In addition, with the abovementioned techniques, the spontaneous dissociation of MRC 68/40 into subunits upon incubation at 37°C in phosphate buffer was clearly demonstrated by the increased immunoreactivity in the profiles assessed with both RIA-subunit systems. It is concluded that charge heterogeneity of LHi, α- and β-subunits, as observed for different preparations, is confined to a limited population of forms. Differences between preparations are only quantitative. A single preparation, therefore, can be used as a general model for the study of human luteinizing hormone.


1985 ◽  
Vol 110 (2) ◽  
pp. 182-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. A. van Ginkel ◽  
J. G. Loeber

Abstract. A highly purified LH preparation, prepared from human pituitaries (NM14) was studied using immunochemical and in vitro biological techniques. Using isoelectric focusing 5 different biologically active components could be detected, 4 of which were located between pH = 7.0 and 8.6, one was located at pH = 4.9. The biological activity in the acidic part of the pH gradient is probably due to the formation of an artefact during storage in solution. The experiments were performed with special emphasis on the occurrence of LH subunits, for which until now no pI-values have been reported. Using specific radioimmunochemical (RIA) systems at least 7 different α-subunit components and 4 different β-subunit components could be detected. The presence of even more components is likely. The α-subunit components, with pI-values of: 4.6, 5.2, 6.0, 7.1, 8.1, 8.8 and 9.7, were located spread over the entire pH-gradient whereas all β-subunit components were located above pH = 7.5, the pI-values being 7.7, 8.4, 8.5 and 10.4. The identification of these components as α- or β-subunit was based on the relative response in the different RIA systems, the absence of biological activity and the response changes during incubation at 37°C. Refocusing of the above mentioned biologically active components individually resulted each time in a single component with a pI-value identical to its corresponding 'parent'. After incubation at 37°C of these components each time the same variety of subunit components was found with discrete pI-values, identical to those above.


1984 ◽  
Vol 62 (9) ◽  
pp. 853-858 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erwin Regoeczi ◽  
Paul A. Chindemi ◽  
Maria T. Debanne

125I-labeled asialotransferrin types 1 and 2 were administered in small doses to rats. The protein still in the plasma after 1–12 h was partially repurified and electrophoresed at pH 8.1, together with a transferrin standard that is composed of all six forms of the protein with respect to sialic acid content. The electrophoretic mobility of both asialotransferrins increased with time, type 2 being affected sooner than type 1. The changed mobility was due to increased electronegativity that was fully reversible by treatment of the samples with neuraminidase, thus identifying the underlying cause as partial resialylation. Asialotransferrin incubated in vitro with serum, plasma, or whole blood for 16 h exhibited no change in electrophoretic mobility. In conjunction with an earlier study on asialotransferrin type 3, it was found that the apparent speeds of resialylation of the three asialotransferrins were in the same order as their affinities for the asialoglycoprotein-binding hepatic lectin. This suggests the involvement of an endo- rather than of an ecto-transferase. Transfer of 59Fe from asialotransferrins to the liver was used to monitor the frequency of hepatocyte–asialotransferrin interactions. Iron deposition in the liver took place much more rapidly than the appearance of detectable quantities of partially resialylated asialotransferrin molecules in the circulation. It is concluded that each asialotransferrin molecule probably undergoes several passages through the hepatocyte before its glycans become modified.


1965 ◽  
Vol 97 (2) ◽  
pp. 333-339 ◽  
Author(s):  
AJ Anderson

1. Although glycoproteins with less than 1% of sialic acid (fibrinogen, lipoproteins, gamma-globulins) interact electrostatically with chondromucoprotein to form insoluble complexes, interaction with glycoproteins containing larger amounts of sialic acid (orosomucoid, urine glycoprotein, seromucoid, fraction VI) was electrostatically impossible. Reasons for this are discussed. 2. The latter glycoproteins interacted with chondromucoprotein after mild acid hydrolysis or neuraminidase treatment, complex-formation being inversely related to their sialic acid content. 3. Complex-formation with sialic acid-deficient orosomucoid was maximum at pH3.6 and negligible above its isoelectric point of pH5, and was inhibited by Ca(2+) ions and EDTA. 4. These results are discussed in relation to the carbohydrate composition and biological activities of euglobulin fractions, and of complexes formed by adding chondromucoprotein to abnormal plasmas which may contain sialic acid-deficient glycoproteins owing to faulty carbohydrate metabolism.


1982 ◽  
Vol 92 (2) ◽  
pp. 195-204 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. A. ZAIDI ◽  
B. FRÖYSA ◽  
E. DICZFALUSY

Eight highly purified human pituitary FSH preparations and purified preparations of the α-and β-subunits of FSH were fractionated by an electrofocusing technique in the pH range of 2·5–10·0 on a sucrose density gradient. The human (h) FSH activity in each of the eluted fractions was monitored by an in-vitro bioassay and a radioimmunoassay procedure. After electrofocusing, the overall recovery of the biological activity of the eight preparations was between 80 and 94% (mean 88%). On the other hand, the recovery of immunoreactivity ranged between 30 and 84% (mean 71%). A loss of over 85% of hFSH immunoreactivity was observed when the α- and β-subunits of hFSH were fractionated by the same procedure. The specific loss of varying amounts of immunoreactivity in all preparations during electrofocusing was also reflected by a proportional increase in the ratios of biological activity (B) to immunoreactivity (I); preparation A, which exhibited a loss of 70% of the immunoreactivity, had a threefold increase in its B/I ratio after electrofocusing. Significant differences were observed in the electrofocusing profiles of the eight preparations both in terms of their pI values and of their spread. The disparity in the relative distribution of hFSH activities in different pH regions suggested major differences in the carbohydrate moieties (sialic acid content) of the preparations studied, probably as a result of the chemical manipulations involved in the purification of the hormone. It is suggested that a combination of several (but certainly not all) of the preparations might serve as a provisional International Reference Preparation for hFSH radioimmunoassays.


1977 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 265-277
Author(s):  
M.A. Surani

The influence of extracellular environmental factors on preimplantation rat blastocysts was tested by determining the number of embryos which escaped from their zonae pellucidae, followed by attachment and outgrowth of trophoblast giant cells, after 72 h in culture Uterine luminal ocmponents from individual females, or hormones, were included in Dulbecco's medium which contained 4 mg/ml bovine serum albumin. In about 20% of cases, uterine fluids were embryotonic. However, uterine fluids from day-5 pregnant females, the day of implantation in the rat, were more potent in these tests than uterine fluids obtained from ovariectomized females treated with progesterone alone. The potency of a mixture of the 2 fluids was also high. Uterine fluids obtained at 14 h after an injection of oestradiol and progesterone to the ovariectomized females, were also effective in these tests. Rat serum and foetal calf serum were effective too, but steroids or insulin alone in the medium had no detectable influence on embryos. Serum or uterine luminal proteins appear to be essential for maintaining the viability of the blastocysts and for inducing the responses observed here. In the uterine fluids, some proteins released into the lumen after treatment of females with oestradiol and progesterone appear to be the biologically active components. Differences in the responses of blastocysts in vitro are compared with those in vivo.


1969 ◽  
Vol 115 (3) ◽  
pp. 523-527 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian B. Cohen

An extract was prepared from rabbit reticulocyte ribosomes after treatment with potassium chloride as described by Miller, Hamada, Yang, Cohen & Schweet (1967). This extract has been shown to convert monoribosomes into polyribosomes during protein synthesis in vitro (Cohen, 1968). The nature of this extract was studied in greater detail. Centrifugation of the extract through a sucrose density gradient separated the activity into a fast-sedimenting fraction. The two fractions were shown to have different functions in stimulating cell-free protein synthesis and their active components were shown to be protein or partly protein in nature. Each fraction was analysed by electrophoresis and in the analytical ultracentrifuge. It was concluded that the active component in the fast-sedimenting fraction had a sedimentation coefficient of 15·5s and that of the slow-sedimenting fraction 10·5s.


1997 ◽  
Vol 9 (5) ◽  
pp. 501 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick G. Burgon ◽  
Peter G. Stanton ◽  
Kim Pettersson ◽  
David M. Robertson

To establish whether sialic acid content is responsible for an observed 7–8-fold variability in bioactivity in vitro of highly purified human pituitary luteinizing hormone (hLH) isoforms, the bioactivity in vitro, radioreceptor activity and immunoactivity of hLH isoforms were determined before and after enzymatic desialylation. Three immunofluorometric assays with different hLH specificities allowed characterization of 13–24 pituitary hLH isoform preparations of pI 7·03–8·98 in terms of sialic acid content (1–5 sialic acid residues per LH molecule), bioactivity in vitro (4030–30 000 I.U. mg-1), radioreceptor activity (6420–25 400 I.U. mg-1) and hLH immunoactivity (2900–4400 to 18 300–27 300 I.U. mg-1). Significant positive correlations between sialic acid content and either immunoactivity or in vitro bioactivity were observed, whereas radioreceptor activity showed a curvilinear response. Following more than 90% removal of sialic acid, both in vitro bioactivity and radioreceptor activity were increased, although specific activity still differed between isoforms; immunoactivities were unaffected. It is concluded that the presence of the sialic acid residue(s) on hLH isoforms does partially contribute to the in vitro bioactivity and radioreceptor activity of the isoforms, but that hLH immunoactivity is independent of sialic acid content.


1971 ◽  
Vol 123 (3) ◽  
pp. 399-405 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. G. Beeley

Three major and two minor species of ovomucoid were separated by chromatography on sulphoethyl-Sephadex. The predominant sialic acid-free species was further resolved into three fractions by DEAE-cellulose chromatography. Although all species of ovomucoid had closely similar trypsin-inhibiting activity, immunochemical properties and amino acid composition, they differ in carbohydrate composition. Wide variation was observed in the content of galactose, N-acetylglucosamine and sialic acid. Charge heterogeneity was related, in part, to variation in sialic acid content. The implications of variable carbohydrate composition for the structure and function of ovomucoid are discussed.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document