Powell Wyatt C, Jing Ruiheng, Herlory Morgane, Holland Patrick, Poliyenko Darya, Ebmeier Christopher C, Stowell Michael H B, Walczak Maciej A
Department of Chemistry, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States.
Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309, United States.
J Am Chem Soc. 2025 Feb 26;147(8):6995-7007. doi: 10.1021/jacs.4c17873. Epub 2025 Feb 17.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by the accumulation of tau protein aggregates. In this study, we investigated the effects of -glycosylation on tau, focusing on its impact on aggregation and phase behavior. We chemically prepared homogeneous glycoproteins with high-mannose glycans or a single -acetylglucosamine at the confirmed glycosylation sites in K18 and 2N4R tau. Our findings reveal that -glycosylation significantly alters biophysical properties and potentially cellular functions of tau. Small glycans promote tau aggregation and liquid-liquid phase separation (LLPS), while larger glycans reduce these effects. High mannose glycans at N410 enhance phosphorylation by GSK3β, suggesting a pathological role in AD. Functional assays demonstrate that -glycosylation does not impact microtubule polymerization dynamics but modulates aggregation kinetics and morphology. This research underscores the importance of glycosylation in tau pathology and opens new avenues for therapeutic interventions targeting glycan processing.
阿尔茨海默病(AD)是一种以tau蛋白聚集体积累为特征的神经退行性疾病。在本研究中,我们研究了O-糖基化对tau的影响,重点关注其对聚集和相行为的影响。我们在K18和2N4R tau的已确认糖基化位点化学制备了具有高甘露糖聚糖或单个N-乙酰葡糖胺的均一糖蛋白。我们的研究结果表明,O-糖基化显著改变了tau的生物物理性质和潜在的细胞功能。小聚糖促进tau聚集和液-液相分离(LLPS),而大聚糖则减少这些影响。N410处的高甘露糖聚糖增强了GSK3β介导的磷酸化,提示其在AD中的病理作用。功能分析表明,O-糖基化不影响微管聚合动力学,但调节聚集动力学和形态。本研究强调了糖基化在tau病理学中的重要性,并为靶向聚糖加工的治疗干预开辟了新途径。