Efficient biochemical engineering of cellular sialic acids using an unphysiological sialic acid precursor in cells lacking UDP-N-acetylglucosamine 2-epimerase.

Abstract

Sialic acids comprise a family of terminal sugars essential for a variety of biological recognition systems. N-Propanoylmannosamine, an unphysiological sialic acid precursor, is taken up and metabolized by mammalian cells resulting in oligosaccharide-bound N-propanoylneuraminic acid. N-Propanoylmannosamine, applied to endogenously hyposialylated subclones of the myeloid leukemia HL60 and of the B-cell lymphoma BJA-B, both deficient in UDP-N-acetylglucosamine 2-epimerase, is efficiently metabolized to CMP-N-propanoylneuraminic acid resulting in up to 85% of glycoconjugate-associated sialic acids being unphysiological N-propanoylneuraminic acid. Thus, UDP-N-acetylglucosamine 2-epimerase-deficient cell lines provide an important experimental progress in engineering cells to display an almost homogeneous population of defined, structurally altered sialic acids.

• Authors: L R Mantey, O T Keppler, M Pawlita, W Reutter, S Hinderlich
• Journal: FEBS letters (FEBS Lett) Vol. 503 Issue 1 Pg. 80-4 (Aug 10 2001) ISSN: 0014-5793 [Print] England
• PMID: 11513859 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• Escherichia coli Proteins
• N-propanoylneuraminic acid
• Neuraminic Acids
• Cytidine Monophosphate N-Acetylneuraminic Acid
• Carbohydrate Epimerases
• UDP acetylglucosamine-2-epimerase
• wecB protein, E coli

Topics

• Carbohydrate Epimerases (metabolism)
• Cell Line
• Cell Membrane (metabolism)
• Cytidine Monophosphate N-Acetylneuraminic Acid (chemistry, metabolism)
• Escherichia coli Proteins
• Flow Cytometry
• Humans
• Neuraminic Acids (metabolism)
• Tumor Cells, Cultured