Fucosylated heparan sulfate from the midgut gland of Patinopecten yessoensis

The structural and functional relationships of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) derived from marine organisms have been investigated, suggesting that marine invertebrates, particularly Bivalvia, are abundant sources of highly sulfated or branched GAGs. In this study, we identified a novel fucosylated heparan sulfate (Fuc-HS) from the midgut gland of the Japanese scallop, Patinopecten yessoensis. Scallop HS showed resistance to GAG-degrading enzymes, including chondroitinases and heparinases, and susceptibility to heparinases increased when scallop HS was treated with mild acid hydrolysis, which removes the fucosyl group. Moreover, 1H NMR detected sig-nificant signals near 1.2-1.3 ppm corresponding to the H-6 methyl proton of fucose residues and small H-3 (3.59 ppm) or H-2 (3.39 ppm) signals of glucuronate (GlcA) were detected, suggesting that the fucose moiety is attached to the C-3 position of GlcA in scallop HS. GC-MS detected peaks corresponding to 1, 3, 5-tri-O-acetyl-2, 4-di-O-methyl-L-fucitol and 1, 4, 5-tri-O-acetyl-2, 3-di-O-methyl-L-fucitol, suggesting that the fucose moiety is 3- O-or 4-O-sulfated. Furthermore, scallop HS showed anti-coagulant and neurite outgrowth-promoting (NOP) activities. These results suggest that the midgut gland of scallops is a valuable source of Fuc-HS with biological activities.

Automated summary

The study investigates the glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) derived from marine organisms and finds that marine invertebrates, especially Bivalvia, are rich sources of highly sulfated or branched GAGs. A novel fucosylated heparan sulfate (Fuc-HS) is identified from the midgut gland of the Japanese scallop, Patinopecten yessoensis. Scallop HS exhibits resistance to GAG-degrading enzymes and shows anti-coagulant and neurite outgrowth-promoting activities. These findings suggest that the midgut gland of scallops is a valuable source of biologically active Fuc-HS.