Variation of acharan sulfate and monosaccharide composition and analysis of neutral N-glycans in African giant snail (Achatina fulica)

• Published in: Glycoconjugate journal Vol. 25; no. 9; pp. 863 - 877
• Main Authors: Park, Youmie, Zhang, Zhenqing, Laremore, Tatiana N, Li, Boyangzi, Sim, Joon-Soo, Im, A-Rang, Ahn, Mi Young, Kim, Yeong Shik, Linhardt, Robert J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Boston Boston : Springer US 01.12.2008; Springer US; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Acharan sulfate; Achatina fulica eggs; Africa; African giant snails; Animal reproduction; Animals; beta-N-Acetylhexosaminidases - metabolism; Biochemistry; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biophysics; Carbohydrate Sequence; Gastropoda - chemistry; Gastropoda - enzymology; Glycosaminoglycans - chemistry; Life Sciences; Mannose - chemistry; Mannosyl-Glycoprotein Endo-beta-N-Acetylglucosaminidase - metabolism; Mass spectrometry; Molecular Sequence Data; Mollusks; Monosaccharide composition analysis; Monosaccharides - chemistry; Neutral N-glycans; Ovum - chemistry; Pathology; Peptides; Polysaccharides - analysis; Polysaccharides - chemistry; Spectrometry, Mass, Electrospray Ionization; Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization; Africa; African giant snails; eggs; Neutral; glycans; Acharan sulfate; Monosaccharide composition analysis; Mass spectrometry
• ISSN: 0282-0080; 1573-4986
• DOI: 10.1007/s10719-008-9149-1

Acharan sulfate content from African giant snail (Achatina fulica) was compared in eggs and snails of different ages. Acharan sulfate was not found in egg. Acharan sulfate disaccharide [rightward arrow]4)-α-d-GlcNpAc (1[rightward arrow]4)-α-l-IdoAp2S(1[rightward arrow], analyzed by SAX (strong-anion exchange)-HPLC was observed soon after hatching and increases as the snails grow. Monosaccharide compositional analysis showed that mole % of glucosamine, a major monosaccharide of acharan sulfate, increased with age while mole % of galactose decreased with age. These results suggest that galactans represent a major energy source during development, while acharan sulfate appearing immediately after hatching, is essential for the snail growth. The structures of neutral N-glycans released from eggs by peptide N-glycosidase F (PNGase F), were next elucidated using ESI-MS/MS, MALDI-MS/MS, enzyme digestion, and monosaccharide composition analysis. Three types of neutral N-glycan structures were observed, truncated (Hex₂₋₄-HexNAc₂), high mannose (Hex₅₋₉-HexNAc₂), and complex (Hex₃-HexNAc₂₋₁₀) types. None showed core fucosylation.