REMAR-IGTP Group, Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP) & Nephrology Department, University Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol (HUGTiP), Can Ruti Campus, 08916 Badalona, Spain.
Department of Cell Biology, Physiology and Immunology, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), 08193 Bellaterra, Spain.
Int J Mol Sci. 2022 Aug 23;23(17):9539. doi: 10.3390/ijms23179539.
Mesenchymal stromal cell-derived extracellular vesicles (MSC-EV) are widely considered as a cell-free therapeutic alternative to MSC cell administration, due to their immunomodulatory and regenerative properties. However, the interaction mechanisms between EV and target cells are not fully understood. The surface glycans could be key players in EV-cell communication, being specific molecular recognition patterns that are still little explored. In this study, we focused on the role of N-glycosylation of MSC-EV as mediators of MSC-EV and endothelial cells' interaction for subsequent EV uptake and the induction of cell migration and angiogenesis. For that, EV from immortalized Wharton's Jelly MSC (iWJ-MSC-EV) were isolated by size exclusion chromatography (SEC) and treated with the glycosidase PNGase-F in order to remove wild-type N-glycans. Then, CFSE-labelled iWJ-MSC-EV were tested in the context of in vitro capture, agarose-spot migration and matrigel-based tube formation assays, using HUVEC. As a result, we found that the N-glycosylation in iWJ-MSC-EV is critical for interaction with HUVEC cells. iWJ-MSC-EV were captured by HUVEC, stimulating their tube-like formation ability and promoting their recruitment. Conversely, the removal of N-glycans through PNGase-F treatment reduced all of these functional activities induced by native iWJ-MSC-EV. Finally, comparative lectin arrays of iWJ-MSC-EV and PNGase-F-treated iWJ-MSC-EV found marked differences in the surface glycosylation pattern, particularly in N-acetylglucosamine, mannose, and fucose-binding lectins. Taken together, our results highlight the importance of N-glycans in MSC-EV to permit EV-cell interactions and associated functions.
间充质基质细胞衍生的细胞外囊泡(MSC-EV)因其具有免疫调节和再生特性,被广泛认为是 MSC 细胞给药的无细胞治疗替代物。然而,EV 与靶细胞之间的相互作用机制尚不完全清楚。表面糖基可能是 EV 细胞通讯的关键因素,是仍在探索的特定分子识别模式。在这项研究中,我们专注于 MSC-EV 中的 N-糖基化作为 MSC-EV 与内皮细胞相互作用的介质,以促进随后的 EV 摄取以及细胞迁移和血管生成的诱导。为此,通过尺寸排阻色谱(SEC)从永生化 Wharton 果冻 MSC(iWJ-MSC-EV)中分离 EV,并使用 PNGase-F 糖苷酶处理以去除野生型 N-聚糖。然后,在体外捕获、琼脂糖斑点迁移和基于基质胶的管形成测定中,使用 HUVEC 测试 CFSE 标记的 iWJ-MSC-EV。结果发现,iWJ-MSC-EV 中的 N-糖基化对于与 HUVEC 细胞的相互作用至关重要。iWJ-MSC-EV 被 HUVEC 捕获,刺激其管状形成能力并促进其募集。相反,通过 PNGase-F 处理去除 N-糖基会降低天然 iWJ-MSC-EV 诱导的所有这些功能活性。最后,iWJ-MSC-EV 和 PNGase-F 处理的 iWJ-MSC-EV 的比较凝集素阵列发现表面糖基化模式存在明显差异,特别是在 N-乙酰葡萄糖胺、甘露糖和岩藻糖结合凝集素上。总之,我们的结果强调了 N-聚糖在 MSC-EV 中对于允许 EV 细胞相互作用和相关功能的重要性。