On the structure of bovine articular cartilage high density proteoglycans. Isolation of the keratan sulfate and chondroitin sulfate side chains.

The structure of adult bovine articular cartilage high density proteoglycans (PG-I) was studied by degradation with Pronase, chondroitinase ABC, and alkaline borohydride treatments and fractionation and analysis of the products. The keratan sulfate (KS) peptides were rich in glutamic acid, proline, and serine and had a low glycine content. The chondroitin sulfate (CS) peptides had a high content of serine, glycine, and glutamic acid and a much lower proline content than the KS peptides. The data indicate that the KS and CS chains occur in more distinct regions of the protein core(s) than in bovine nasal cartilage PG. After alkaline borohydride treatment there was an almost quantitative conversion of xylose to xylitol and galactosaminitol was the only hexosaminitol detected in KS fractions. The results obtained indicated that the alkali-labile bonds linking the CS and KS chains are the same as those reported to occur in other cartilage PGs. The Mr of the KS chains calculated from the glucosamine and galactosaminitol contents gave values of 6,000-7,000, although gel chromatography and light scattering measurements indicated considerable heterogeneity. The KS and CS chains were quantitatively precipitated by cetylpyridinium chloride and the KS and a portion (15%) of the CS chains were found to be soluble in 1% cetylpyridinium chloride. The abnormal solubility properties of the CS chains in the presence of 1% cetylpyridinium chloride is thought to be due to their low sulfate content. The molecular weight of the remainder of the CS chains, based on the ratio of xylitol to galactosamine, varied from 6,500 to 16,000. The low Mr CS chains were rich in 6-sulfated disaccharides whereas the higher Mr chains had a higher content of 4-sulfated disaccharides. The ratio of galactose to xylitol also varied with Mr. These results indicate similarities in the structure of the adult bovine articular cartilage PG-Is to other cartilage high density PGs. The heterogeneities observed in the composition of the KS and CS chains, and their occurrence in relatively distinct regions of the protein core(s) indicate, however, that there is still much to be learned about the structure of these complex macromolecules.