Identification of new O-GlcNAc modified proteins using a click-chemistry-based tagging

Anal Bioanal Chem. 2008 Apr;390(8):2089-97. doi: 10.1007/s00216-008-1950-y. Epub 2008 Mar 28.

Abstract

The O-linked beta-N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc) modification is an abundant post-translational modification in eukaryotic cells. This dynamic glycosylation plays a fundamental role in the activity of many nuclear and cytoplasmic proteins and is associated with pathologies like type II diabetes, Alzheimer's disease or some cancers. However the exact link between O-GlcNAc-modified proteins and their function in cells is largely undefined for most cases. Here we report a strategy based on the 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition, called click chemistry, between unnatural N-acetylglucosamine (GlcNAc) analogues (substituted with an azido or alkyne group) and the corresponding biotinylated probe to specifically detect, enrich and identify O-GlcNAc-modified proteins. This bio-orthogonal conjugation confirms that only azido analogue of GlcNAc is metabolized by the cell. Thanks to the biotin probe, affinity purification on streptavidin beads allowed us to identify 32 O-GlcNAc-azido-tagged proteins by LC-MS/MS analysis in an MCF-7 cellular model, 14 of which were previously unreported. This work illustrates the use of the click-chemistry-based strategy combined with a proteomic approach to get further insight into the pattern of O-GlcNAc-modified proteins and the biological significance of this post-translational modification. [figure: see text]

MeSH terms

  • Acetylglucosamine / analogs & derivatives
  • Acetylglucosamine / analysis*
  • Acetylglucosamine / metabolism
  • Biotin / chemistry
  • Biotinylation / methods
  • Cell Line, Tumor
  • Female
  • Glycosylation
  • Humans
  • Molecular Probe Techniques*
  • Molecular Probes / chemistry*
  • Molecular Structure
  • Protein Processing, Post-Translational
  • Proteins / analysis*
  • Proteins / chemistry
  • Proteins / metabolism
  • Proteomics / methods*
  • Streptavidin / chemistry
  • Time Factors

Substances

  • Molecular Probes
  • Proteins
  • Biotin
  • Streptavidin
  • Acetylglucosamine