N-glycosylation engineering of plants for the biosynthesis of glycoproteins with bisected and branched complex N-glycans.
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ABSTRACT: Glycoengineering is increasingly being recognized as a powerful tool to generate recombinant glycoproteins with a customized N-glycosylation pattern. Here, we demonstrate the modulation of the plant glycosylation pathway toward the formation of human-type bisected and branched complex N-glycans. Glycoengineered Nicotiana benthamiana lacking plant-specific N-glycosylation (i.e. ?1,2-xylose and core ?1,3-fucose) was used to transiently express human erythropoietin (hEPO) and human transferrin (hTF) together with modified versions of human ?1,4-mannosyl-?1,4-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase (GnTIII), ?1,3-mannosyl-?1,4-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase (GnTIV) and ?1,6-mannosyl-?1,6-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase (GnTV). hEPO was expressed as a fusion to the IgG-Fc domain (EPO-Fc) and purified via protein A affinity chromatography. Recombinant hTF was isolated from the intracellular fluid of infiltrated plant leaves. Mass spectrometry-based N-glycan analysis of hEPO and hTF revealed the quantitative formation of bisected (GnGnbi) and tri- as well as tetraantennary complex N-glycans (Gn[GnGn], [GnGn]Gn and [GnGn][GnGn]). Co-expression of GnTIII together with GnTIV and GnTV resulted in the efficient generation of bisected tetraantennary complex N-glycans. Our results show the generation of recombinant proteins with human-type N-glycosylation at great uniformity. The strategy described here provides a robust and straightforward method for producing mammalian-type N-linked glycans of defined structures on recombinant glycoproteins, which can advance glycoprotein research and accelerate the development of protein-based therapeutics.
SUBMITTER: Castilho A
PROVIDER: S-EPMC3091529 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Jun
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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