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Molecular Cloning of Globotriaosylceramide/CD77 Synthase, a Glycosyltransferase That Initiates the Synthesis of Globo Series Glycosphingolipids

2000; Elsevier BV; Volume: 275; Issue: 20 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1074/jbc.m909620199

1083-351X

Yoshinao Kojima, Satoshi Fukumoto, Keiko Furukawa, Tetsuya Okajima, Joëlle Wiels, Keiko Yokoyama, Yasuo Suzuki, Takeshi Urano, Michio Ohta, Koichi Furukawa,

Lysosomal Storage Disorders Research

The expression cloning of a cDNA for globotriaosylceramide (Gb3)/CD77 synthase (α1,4-galactosyltransferase) was achieved using an anti-Gb3 antibody and mouse L cells as a recipient cell line for the transfection. The isolated cDNA clone designated pVTR1 predicted a type II membrane protein with 19 amino acids of cytoplasmic domain, 26 amino acids of transmembrane region, and a catalytic domain with 308 amino acids. Introduction of the cDNA clone into L cells resulted in the neosynthesis of Gb3/CD77, and the extracts of the transfectant cells showed α1,4-galactosyltransferase activity only on lactosylceramide and galactosylceramide. In Northern blotting, a 2.3-kilobase mRNA was strongly expressed in heart, kidney, spleen, and placenta and weakly in colon, small intestine, and brain. Transfection of the cDNA into L cells resulted in the constitution of sensitivity to the apoptosis with Shiga-like toxins (verotoxins). Since Gb3/CD77 synthase initiates the synthesis of globo series glycolipids, the isolation of this cDNA will make possible further investigations into the function of its important series of glycolipids.