Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
39
pubmed:dateCreated
2003-9-22
pubmed:databankReference
pubmed:abstractText
The human cartilage glycoprotein-39 (HCgp-39 or YKL40) is expressed by synovial cells and macrophages during inflammation. Its precise physiological role is unknown. However, it has been proposed that HCgp-39 acts as an autoantigen in rheumatoid arthritis, and high expression levels have been associated with cancer development. HCgp-39 shares high sequence homology with family 18 chitinases, and although it binds to chitin it lacks enzymatic activity. The crystal structure of HCgp-39 shows that the protein displays a (beta/alpha)8-barrel fold with an insertion of an alpha + beta domain. A 43-A long carbohydrate-binding cleft is present at the C-terminal side of the beta-strands in the (beta/alpha)8 barrel. Binding of chitin fragments of different lengths identified nine sugar-binding subsites in the groove. Protein-carbohydrate interactions are mainly mediated by stacking of side chains of aromatic amino acid residues. Surprisingly, the specificity of chitin binding to HCgp-39 depends on the length of the oligosaccharide. Although chitin disaccharides tend to occupy the distal subsites, longer chains bind preferably to the central subsites in the groove. Despite the absence of enzymatic activity, long chitin fragments are distorted upon binding, with the GlcNAc at subsite -1 in a boat conformation, similar to what has been observed in chitinases. The presence of chitin in the human body has never been documented so far. However, the binding features observed in the complex structures suggest that either chitin or a closely related oligosaccharide could act as the physiological ligand for HCgp-39.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Sep
pubmed:issn
0021-9258
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:day
26
pubmed:volume
278
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
37753-60
pubmed:dateRevised
2011-11-17
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
2003
pubmed:articleTitle
Crystal structure and carbohydrate-binding properties of the human cartilage glycoprotein-39.
pubmed:affiliation
Laboratory of Biophysical Chemistry, Department of Chemistry, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 4, 9747AG Groningen, The Netherlands.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article