Identification of novel N-glycosylation sites at noncanonical protein consensus motifs
MS Lowenthal, KS Davis, T Formolo… - Journal of proteome …, 2016 - ACS Publications
MS Lowenthal, KS Davis, T Formolo, LE Kilpatrick, KW Phinney
Journal of proteome research, 2016•ACS PublicationsN-glycosylation of proteins is well known to occur at asparagine residues that fall within the
canonical consensus sequence NXS/T but has also been identified at a small number of
asparagine residues within NXC motifs, including the N491 residue of human
serotransferrin. Here we report novel glycosylation sites within noncanonical consensus
motifs, in the conformation NXC, based on mass spectrometry analysis of partially
deglycosylated glycopeptide targets. Alpha-1-acid glycoprotein (A1AG) and serotransferrin …
canonical consensus sequence NXS/T but has also been identified at a small number of
asparagine residues within NXC motifs, including the N491 residue of human
serotransferrin. Here we report novel glycosylation sites within noncanonical consensus
motifs, in the conformation NXC, based on mass spectrometry analysis of partially
deglycosylated glycopeptide targets. Alpha-1-acid glycoprotein (A1AG) and serotransferrin …
N-glycosylation of proteins is well known to occur at asparagine residues that fall within the canonical consensus sequence N-X-S/T but has also been identified at a small number of asparagine residues within N-X-C motifs, including the N491 residue of human serotransferrin. Here we report novel glycosylation sites within noncanonical consensus motifs, in the conformation N-X-C, based on mass spectrometry analysis of partially deglycosylated glycopeptide targets. Alpha-1-acid glycoprotein (A1AG) and serotransferrin (Tf) were observed for the first time to be N-glycosylated on asparagine residues within a total of six unique noncanonical motifs. N-glycosylation was initially predicted in silico based on the evolutionary conservation of the N-X-C motif among related mammalian species and demonstrated experimentally in A1AG from porcine, canine, and feline sources and in human serotransferrin. High-resolution liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry was employed to collect fragmentation data of predicted GlcNAcylated peptides and to assign modification sites within N-X-C motifs. A combination of targeted analytical techniques that includes complementary mass spectrometry platforms, enzymatic digestions, and partial-deglycosylation procedures was developed to confirm the novel observations. Additionally, we found that A1AG in porcine and canine sources is highly N-glycosylated at a noncanonical motif (N-Q-C) based on semiquantitative multiple reaction monitoring analysisthe first report of an N-X-C motif exhibiting substantial N-glycosylation. Although reports of N-X-C motif N-glycosylation are relatively uncommon in the literature, this work adds to a growing list of glycoproteins reported with glycosylation at various forms of noncanonical motifs.
