Reactions involving removal and addition of glucose to N-glycans in the ER (endoplasmic reticulum) are performed in higher eukaryotes by glucosidases I and II and the UDP-glucose:glycoprotein glucosyltransferase respectively. Monoglucosylated N-glycan structures have been implicated in glycoprotein folding or ER quality control. Components of the system appear across a range of organisms; however, the precise combination differs between organisms. We have identified putative components of the system in the protozoal organism Trypanosoma brucei by local alignment searching. The function of one of these components, a glucosidase II α-subunit homologue, has been confirmed by phenotyping a null mutant, and an ectopic expression cell line. A combination of MS, methylation linkage analysis, exoglycosidase digestion and partial acetolysis have been used to characterize three novel N-glycan structures on the variant surface glycoprotein of the null mutant. On the basis of our results, we propose that two N-glycan precursors are available for transfer to variant surface glycoprotein (variant 221) in the ER of T. brucei; only one of these precursors is glucosylated after transfer.
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November 2004
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Conference Article|
October 26 2004
The N-glycan glucosidase system in Trypanosoma brucei
D. Jones;
D. Jones
1
1School of Life Sciences, University of Dundee, Dundee DD1 5EH, U.K.
1To whom correspondence should be addressed, at MAJF Group, Wellcome Trust Building, Dundee DD1 5EH, U.K. (email d.c.jones@dundee.ac.uk).
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A. Mehlert;
A. Mehlert
1School of Life Sciences, University of Dundee, Dundee DD1 5EH, U.K.
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M.A.J. Ferguson
M.A.J. Ferguson
1School of Life Sciences, University of Dundee, Dundee DD1 5EH, U.K.
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Publisher: Portland Press Ltd
Received:
July 08 2004
Online ISSN: 1470-8752
Print ISSN: 0300-5127
© 2004 The Biochemical Society
2004
Biochem Soc Trans (2004) 32 (5): 766–768.
Article history
Received:
July 08 2004
Citation
D. Jones, A. Mehlert, M.A.J. Ferguson; The N-glycan glucosidase system in Trypanosoma brucei. Biochem Soc Trans 1 November 2004; 32 (5): 766–768. doi: https://doi.org/10.1042/BST0320766
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