Suppression of Ischemia-Induced Hippocampal Pyramidal Neuron Death by Hyaluronan Tetrasaccharide through Inhibition of Toll-Like Receptor 2 Signaling Pathway.

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are one of the main contributors that induce inflammation under tissue injury and infection. Because excessive inflammation can aggravate disease states, it is important to control inflammation at a moderate level. Herein, we show that hyaluronan (HA) oligomer, HA tetrasaccharide (HA4), could suppress the expression of proinflammatory cytokine IL-1ß when stimulated with both TLR2- and TLR4-specific agonists in primary hippocampal neurons. To understand the effect of HA4 against ischemic insult, we performed hypoxic-ischemic (H/I) brain injury against neonatal mice. HA4 treatment significantly prevented hippocampal pyramidal cell death even 7 days after H/I injury, compared with the control mice. Although TLR2 and TLR4 are known as receptors for HA and also act as a receptor for inducing inflammation, only TLR2-deficient mice showed tolerance against H/I injury. Moreover, HA4 administration suppressed gliosis by inhibiting the activation of NF-κB, the downstream target of TLR2, which led to the suppression of IL-1ß expression. Taken together, our data suggest that the neuroprotective effect of HA4 relies on antagonizing the TLR2/NF-κB pathway to reduce inflammation through suppressing the expression of proinflammatory cytokines after neonatal H/I brain injury.

Molecular mass dependence of hyaluronan detection by sandwich ELISA-like assay and membrane blotting using biotinylated hyaluronan binding protein.

Hyaluronan (HA) is widely detected in biological samples and its concentration is most commonly determined by the use of a labeled specific HA binding protein (aggrecan G1-IGD-G2, HABP), employing membrane blotting and sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA)-like methods. However, the detected signal intensity or the quantified value obtained by using these surface-based methods is related to the molecular mass (M) of HA, especially for HA in the low M range below ~150 kDa. At the same mass or mass concentration, higher M HA gives a higher signal than lower M HA. We have experimentally determined the quantitative relationship between the M of HA (in the range 20-150 kDa) and the relative signal intensity in comparison with a standard HA, in a sandwich ELISA-like assay. An M-dependent signal correction factor (SCF) was calculated and used to correct the signal intensity, so that the corrected concentration value would more accurately reflect the true HA concentration in solution. The SCF for polydisperse low M HA was also calculated and compared with experimental results. When the molecular mass distribution of an HA sample is determined by a method such as gel electrophoresis, then its appropriately averaged SCF can be calculated and used to correct the signal in sandwich ELISA to obtain a more accurate concentration estimation. The correction method works for HA with M between ~150 and 20 kDa, but lower M HA is too poorly detected for useful analysis. The physical basis of the M-dependent detection is proposed to be the increase in detector-accessible fraction of each surface-bound molecule as M increases.

Application of fluorophore-assisted carbohydrate electrophoresis to analysis of disaccharides and oligosaccharides derived from glycosaminoglycans.

Various combinations of fluorescent dyes, polyacrylamide gels, and electrophoresis buffers were tested by fluorophore-assisted carbohydrate electrophoresis (FACE) for the purpose of analyzing sulfated and nonsulfated glycosaminoglycan (GAG) oligosaccharides in which disaccharides and low-molecular weight oligosaccharides were included. A nonionic fluorescent dye was found to be suitable for analyzing sulfated disaccharides derived from sulfated GAGs (e.g., chondroitin sulfate, dermatan sulfate) because sulfated disaccharides themselves had enough anionic potential for electrophoresis. The migration rates of chondroitin sulfate (CS) disaccharides in polyacrylamide gels were affected by the number of sulfate residues and the conformation of each disaccharide. When an anionic fluorescent dye, 8-aminonaphthalene-1,3,6-trisulfonic acid disodium salt (ANTS), was coupled with sulfated GAG oligosaccharides, nearly all of the conjugates migrated at the electrophoretic front due to the added anionic potential. Nonsulfated hyaluronan (HA) oligosaccharides (2-16 saccharides) were subjected to electrophoresis by coupling with a nonionic fluorescent dye, 2-aminoacridone (AMAC), but did not migrate in the order of their molecular size. Especially di-, tetra-, hexa-, and octasaccharides of HA migrated in the reverse order of their molecular size. HA/CS oligosaccharides were able to migrate in the order of their chain lengths by coupling with an anionic fluorescent dye in a nonborate condition.

Large-scale preparation, purification, and characterization of hyaluronan oligosaccharides from 4-mers to 52-mers.

Hyaluronan (HA) was depolymerized by partial digestion with testicular hyaluronidase and separated into size-uniform HA oligosaccharides from 4-mers to 52-mers by anion exchange chromatography after removal of the hyaluronidase. The purity and size of each HA oligosaccharide was confirmed by using HPLC analyses, FACE, and ESI-MS. (1)H and (13)C NMR assignments and elemental analyses were obtained for each HA oligosaccharide. Endotoxins, proteins, and DNA were absent or in trace amounts in these HA oligosaccharides. Gram/mg-scale hyaluronan oligosaccharides were obtained from 200 g of HA starting material. These pure, size-uniform, and large range of HA oligosaccharides will be available for investigating important biological functions of HA, such as for the determination of the size(s) of HA oligosaccharides that induce angiogenesis or mediate inflammatory responses, and to interact with HA-binding proteins and receptors both in in vitro and in vivo studies.