UDP-GlcNAc: Gal beta 3GalNAc-mucin: (GlcNAc----GalNAc) beta 6-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase and UDP-GlcNAc: Gal beta 3(GlcNAc beta 6) GalNAc-mucin (GlcNAc----Gal)beta 3-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase from swine trachea epithelium.

Two specific beta-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferases involved in the branching and elongation of mucin oligosaccharide chains, namely, a beta 1,6 N-acetylglucosaminylsaminyltransferase that transfers N-acetylglucosamine from UDP-N-acetylglucosamine to Gal beta 3GalNAc-mucin to yield Gal beta 3(GlcNAc beta 6)GalNAc-Mucin and a beta 3-N-acetylglucosaminyl transferase that transfers N-acetylglucosamine from UDP-N-acetylglucosamine to Gal beta 3(GlcNAc beta 6)GalNAc-mucin to yield GlcNAc beta 3Gal beta 3 (GlcNAc beta 6)GalNAc-Mucin were purified from the microsomal fraction of swine trachea epithelium. The beta 1,6-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase was purified about 21,800-fold by procedures which included affinity chromatography on DEAE columns containing bound asialo Cowper's gland mucin glycoprotein with Gal beta 1,3GalNAc side chains. The apparent molecular weight estimated by gel filtration was found to be about 60 Kd. The purified enzyme showed a high specificity for Gal beta 1,3GalNAc chains and the most active substrates were mucin glycoproteins containing these chains. The apparent Km of the beta 6-glucosaminyltrans-ferase for Cowper's gland mucin glycoprotein containing Gal beta 1,3GalNAc chains was 0.53 microM; for UDP-N-acetylglucosamine, 12 microM; and for Gal beta 1,3GalNAc alpha NO2 phi, 4 mM. The activity of the beta 6-glucosaminyltransferase was dependent on the extent of glycosylation of the Gal beta 3GalNAc chains in Cowper's gland mucin glycoprotein. The best substrate for the partially purified beta 3-Glucosaminyltransferase was Cowper's gland mucin glycoprotein containing Gal beta 1,3(GlcNAc beta 6)GalNAc side chains. This enzyme showed little or no activity with intact sialylated Cowper's gland mucin glycoprotein or derivatives of this glycoprotein containing GalNAc or Gal beta 1,3GalNAc side chains. The radioactive oligosaccharides formed by these enzymes in large scale reaction mixtures were released from the mucin glycoproteins by treatment with alkaline borohydride, isolated by gel filtration on Bio-Gel P-6 and characterized by methylation analysis and sequential digestion with exoglycosidases. The oligosaccharide products formed by the beta 6- and beta 3-glucosaminyltransferases were shown to be Gal beta 3(GlcNAc beta 6) GalNAc and GlcNAc beta 3 Gal beta 3(GlcNAc beta 6)GalNAc respectively. Taken collectively, these results demonstrate that swine trachea epithelium contains two specific N-acetylglucosaminyltransferases which catalyze the initial branching and elongation reactions involved in the synthesis of O-linked oligosaccharide chains in respiratory mucin glycoproteins. The first enzyme a beta 6-glucosaminyltransferase converts Gal beta 3GalNAc chains in mucin glycoproteins to Gal beta 3(GlcNAc beta 6)GalNAc chains.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)