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Bohlender LL, Parsons J, Hoernstein SNW, Rempfer C, Ruiz-Molina N, Lorenz T, Rodríguez Jahnke F, Figl R, Fode B, Altmann F, Reski R, Decker EL. Stable Protein Sialylation in Physcomitrella. Front Plant Sci 2020; 11:610032. [PMID: 33391325 PMCID: PMC7775405 DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2020.610032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2020] [Accepted: 11/30/2020] [Indexed: 05/07/2023]
Abstract
Recombinantly produced proteins are indispensable tools for medical applications. Since the majority of them are glycoproteins, their N-glycosylation profiles are major determinants for their activity, structural properties and safety. For therapeutical applications, a glycosylation pattern adapted to product and treatment requirements is advantageous. Physcomitrium patens (Physcomitrella, moss) is able to perform highly homogeneous complex-type N-glycosylation. Additionally, it has been glyco-engineered to eliminate plant-specific sugar residues by knock-out of the β1,2-xylosyltransferase and α1,3-fucosyltransferase genes (Δxt/ft). Furthermore, Physcomitrella meets wide-ranging biopharmaceutical requirements such as GMP compliance, product safety, scalability and outstanding possibilities for precise genome engineering. However, all plants, in contrast to mammals, lack the capability to perform N-glycan sialylation. Since sialic acids are a common terminal modification on human N-glycans, the property to perform N-glycan sialylation is highly desired within the plant-based biopharmaceutical sector. In this study, we present the successful achievement of protein N-glycan sialylation in stably transformed Physcomitrella. The sialylation ability was achieved in a Δxt/ft moss line by stable expression of seven mammalian coding sequences combined with targeted organelle-specific localization of the encoded enzymes responsible for the generation of β1,4-galactosylated acceptor N-glycans as well as the synthesis, activation, transport and transfer of sialic acid. Production of free (Neu5Ac) and activated (CMP-Neu5Ac) sialic acid was proven. The glycosidic anchor for the attachment of terminal sialic acid was generated by the introduction of a chimeric human β1,4-galactosyltransferase gene under the simultaneous knock-out of the gene encoding the endogenous β1,3-galactosyltransferase. Functional complex-type N-glycan sialylation was confirmed via mass spectrometric analysis of a stably co-expressed recombinant human protein.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lennard L. Bohlender
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Juliana Parsons
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | | | - Christine Rempfer
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- Spemann Graduate School of Biology and Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Natalia Ruiz-Molina
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Timo Lorenz
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Fernando Rodríguez Jahnke
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- Spemann Graduate School of Biology and Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Rudolf Figl
- Department of Chemistry, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Friedrich Altmann
- Department of Chemistry, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Ralf Reski
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- Spemann Graduate School of Biology and Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- Signalling Research Centres BIOSS and CIBSS, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- Cluster of Excellence livMatS, Freiburg Center for Interactive Materials and Bioinspired Technologies, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Eva L. Decker
- Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Biology, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
- *Correspondence: Eva L. Decker,
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