Protein Glycosylation and Its Impact on Biotechnology

AbstractMelanoma is the most fatal form of skin cancer, with increasing prevalence worldwide. The most common melanoma genetic driver is mutation of the proto-oncogene serine/threonine kinase BRAF; thus, the inhibition of its MAP kinase pathway by specific inhibitors is a commonly applied therapy. However, many patients are resistant, or develop resistance to this type of monotherapy, and therefore combined therapies which target other signaling pathways through various molecular mechanisms are required. A possible strategy may involve targeting cellular energy metabolism, which has been recognized as crucial for cancer development and progression and which connects through glycolysis to cell surface glycan biosynthetic pathways. Protein glycosylation is a hallmark of more than 50% of the human proteome and it has been recognized that altered glycosylation occurs during the metastatic progression of melanoma cells which, in turn facilitates their migration. This review provides a description of recent advances in the search for factors able to remodel cell metabolism between glycolysis and oxidative phosphorylation, and of changes in specific markers and in the biophysical properties of cells during melanoma development from a nevus to metastasis. This development is accompanied by changes in the expression of surface glycans, with corresponding changes in ligand-receptor affinity, giving rise to structural features and viscoelastic parameters particularly well suited to study by label-free biophysical methods.

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Brain glycogen serves as a critical glucosamine cache required for protein glycosylation

Cell Metabolism ◽

10.1016/j.cmet.2021.05.003 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Ramon C. Sun ◽

Lyndsay E.A. Young ◽

Ronald C. Bruntz ◽

Kia H. Markussen ◽

Zhengqiu Zhou ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Protein Glycosylation ◽

Brain Glycogen

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Membrane traffic related to endosome dynamics and protein secretion in filamentous fungi

Bioscience Biotechnology and Biochemistry ◽

10.1093/bbb/zbab004 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Yujiro Higuchi

Keyword(s):

Filamentous Fungi ◽

Protein Secretion ◽

Secretory Pathway ◽

Molecular Mechanisms ◽

Membrane Traffic ◽

Early Endosome ◽

Protein Glycosylation ◽

Hyphal Cell ◽

Cell Factories ◽

Membrane Contacts

ABSTRACT In eukaryotic cells, membrane-surrounded organelles are orchestrally organized spatiotemporally under environmental situations. Among such organelles, vesicular transports and membrane contacts occur to communicate each other, so-called membrane traffic. Filamentous fungal cells are highly polarized and thus membrane traffic is developed to have versatile functions. Early endosome (EE) is an endocytic organelle that dynamically exhibits constant long-range motility through the hyphal cell, which is proven to have physiological roles, such as other organelle distribution and signal transduction. Since filamentous fungal cells are also considered as cell factories, to produce valuable proteins extracellularly, molecular mechanisms of secretory pathway including protein glycosylation have been well investigated. In this review, molecular and physiological aspects of membrane traffic especially related to EE dynamics and protein secretion in filamentous fungi are summarized, and perspectives for application are also described.

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