From a process involved in cell wall synthesis in archaea and some bacteria, N-linked glycosylation has evolved into the most common covalent protein modification in eukaryotic cells. The sugars are added to nascent proteins as a core oligosaccharide unit, which is then extensively modified by removal and addition of sugar residues in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and the Golgi complex. It has become evident that the modifications that take place in the ER reflect a spectrum of functions related to glycoprotein folding, quality control, sorting, degradation, and secretion. The glycans not only promote folding directly by stabilizing polypeptide structures but also indirectly by serving as recognition "tags" that allow glycoproteins to interact with a variety of lectins, glycosidases, and glycosyltranferases. Some of these (such as glucosidases I and II, calnexin, and calreticulin) have a central role in folding and retention, while others (such as alpha-mannosidases and EDEM) target unsalvageable glycoproteins for ER-associated degradation. Each residue in the core oligosaccharide and each step in the modification program have significance for the fate of newly synthesized glycoproteins.

Roles of N-Linked Glycans in the Endoplasmic Reticulum

Conformational diseases are caused by mutations altering the folding pathway or final conformation of a protein. Many conformational diseases are caused by mutations in secretory proteins and reach from metabolic diseases, e.g. diabetes, to developmental and neurological diseases, e.g. Alzheimer's disease. Expression of mutant proteins disrupts protein folding in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), causes ER stress, and activates a signaling network called the unfolded protein response (UPR). The UPR increases the biosynthetic capacity of the secretory pathway through upregulation of ER chaperone and foldase expression. In addition, the UPR decreases the biosynthetic burden of the secretory pathway by downregulating expression of genes encoding secreted proteins. Here we review our current understanding of how an unfolded protein signal is generated, sensed, transmitted across the ER membrane, and how downstream events in this stress response are regulated. We propose a model in which the activity of UPR signaling pathways reflects the biosynthetic activity of the ER. We summarize data that shows that this information is integrated into control of cellular events, which were previously not considered to be under control of ER signaling pathways, e.g. execution of differentiation and starvation programs.

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ER stress and the unfolded protein response.

Simple and complex carbohydrates (glycans) have long been known to play major metabolic, structural and physical roles in biological systems. Targeted microbial binding to host glycans has also been studied for decades. But such biological roles can only explain some of the remarkable complexity and organismal diversity of glycans in nature. Reviewing the subject about two decades ago, one could find very few clear-cut instances of glycan-recognition-specific biological roles of glycans that were of intrinsic value to the organism expressing them. In striking contrast there is now a profusion of examples, such that this updated review cannot be comprehensive. Instead, a historical overview is presented, broad principles outlined and a few examples cited, representing diverse types of roles, mediated by various glycan classes, in different evolutionary lineages. What remains unchanged is the fact that while all theories regarding biological roles of glycans are supported by compelling evidence, exceptions to each can be found. In retrospect, this is not surprising. Complex and diverse glycans appear to be ubiquitous to all cells in nature, and essential to all life forms. Thus, >3 billion years of evolution consistently generated organisms that use these molecules for many key biological roles, even while sometimes coopting them for minor functions. In this respect, glycans are no different from other major macromolecular building blocks of life (nucleic acids, proteins and lipids), simply more rapidly evolving and complex. It is time for the diverse functional roles of glycans to be fully incorporated into the mainstream of biological sciences.

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Biological Roles of Glycans

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and the Golgi comprise the first two steps in protein secretion. Vesicular carriers mediate a continuous flux of proteins and lipids between these compartments, reflecting the transport of newly synthesized proteins out of the ER and the retrieval of escaped ER residents and vesicle machinery. Anterograde and retrograde transport is mediated by distinct sets of cytosolic coat proteins, the COPII and COPI coats, respectively, which act on the membrane to capture cargo proteins into nascent vesicles. We review the mechanisms that govern coat recruitment to the membrane, cargo capture into a transport vesicle, and accurate delivery to the target organelle.

Bi-directional protein transport between the ER and Golgi.

Protein misfolding in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) contributes to the pathogenesis of many diseases. Although oxidative stress can disrupt protein folding, how protein misfolding and oxidative stress impact each other has not been explored. We have analyzed expression of coagulation factor VIII (FVIII), the protein deficient in hemophilia A, to elucidate the relationship between protein misfolding and oxidative stress. Newly synthesized FVIII misfolds in the ER lumen, activates the unfolded protein response (UPR), causes oxidative stress, and induces apoptosis in vitro and in vivo in mice. Strikingly, antioxidant treatment reduces UPR activation, oxidative stress, and apoptosis, and increases FVIII secretion in vitro and in vivo. The findings indicate that reactive oxygen species are a signal generated by misfolded protein in the ER that cause UPR activation and cell death. Genetic or chemical intervention to reduce reactive oxygen species improves protein folding and cell survival and may provide an avenue to treat and/or prevent diseases of protein misfolding.

https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/105/47/18525.full.pdf

Antioxidants reduce endoplasmic reticulum stress and improve protein secretion

Mutations in LMAN1 (also called ERGIC-53) result in combined deficiency of factor V and factor VIII (F5F8D), an autosomal recessive bleeding disorder characterized by coordinate reduction of both clotting proteins. LMAN1 is a mannose-binding type 1 transmembrane protein localized to the endoplasmic reticulum-Golgi intermediate compartment (ERGIC; refs. 2,3), suggesting that F5F8D could result from a defect in secretion of factor V and factor VIII (ref. 4). Correctly folded proteins destined for secretion are packaged in the ER into COPII-coated vesicles, which subsequently fuse to form the ERGIC. Secretion of certain abundant proteins suggests a default pathway requiring no export signals (bulk flow; refs. 6,7). An alternative mechanism involves selective packaging of secreted proteins with the help of specific cargo receptors. The latter model would be consistent with mutations in LMAN1 causing a selective block to export of factor V and factor VIII. But approximately 30% of individuals with F5F8D have normal levels of LMAN1, suggesting that mutations in another gene may also be associated with F5F8D. Here we show that inactivating mutations in MCFD2 cause F5F8D with a phenotype indistinguishable from that caused by mutations in LMAN1. MCFD2 is localized to the ERGIC through a direct, calcium-dependent interaction with LMAN1. These findings suggest that the MCFD2-LMAN1 complex forms a specific cargo receptor for the ER-to-Golgi transport of selected proteins.

Bleeding due to disruption of a cargo-specific ER-to-Golgi transport complex.

Mutations in the WT1 gene causing Wilms tumors were first reported in WAGR syndrome (Wilms tumor, Aniridia, Genitourinary malformation, mental Retardation) and Denys Drash syndrome (pseudohermaphroditism, Wilms tumor, nephropathy), but only in a few patients with hypospadias and cryptorchidism without other signs of Denys Drash (DDS) or WAGR syndrome WT1 mutations were identified. We report a boy, who was born in 1989 with hypospadias and bilateral cryptorchidism. Previous karyotyping and endocrine studies had ruled out any known cause of male pseudohermaphroditism. Subsequently, he developed a bilateral Wilms tumor, which was detected by palpation at the age of 15 months during a routine visit by the general pediatrician. Because of its extensive size, surgery and chemotherapy were needed for treatment. Analysis of the WT1 gene was performed 5 y after diagnosis and revealed a C to T transition in one allele generating a stop codon at codon 362 and subsequently leading to a truncated protein with loss of its ability to bind to DNA. No signs of DDS or WAGR syndrome are present in the boy. The work up of this patient and the so far known few comparable cases from the literature lead to the conclusion that in newborns with severe urogenital malformations not due to known chromosomal or endocrine disorders mutational screening of the WT1 gene should be performed, to evaluate the high risk of developing a Wilms tumor. We favor mutational screening in these patients as an easy tool for investigation, because in the future it will probably decrease the necessity of frequent control visits in patients without a WT1 mutation.

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Ursula Schulte-Overberg

Papers

Bleeding due to disruption of a cargo-specific ER-to-Golgi transport complex.

Bilateral Wilms tumor in a boy with severe hypospadias and cryptochidism due to a heterozygous mutation in the WT1 gene.