Decreased ganglioside neuraminidase activity in fibroblasts from mucopolysaccharidosis patients. Inhibition of the activity in vitro by sulfated glycosaminoglycans and other compounds.

The neuraminidase activities towards the ganglioside substrates GD1a, GD3 and GM3 were found to be markedly diminished in homogenates of fibroblasts cultured from patients with various genetic mucopolysaccharidoses. Mixing normal and patients' fibroblast homogenates revealed this effect to be due to the presence of diffusible inhibitors. The neuraminidase acting on the trisaccharide sialyllactose, on the other hand, showed normal activity in all the cell lines tested. Experiments in vitro revealed the sulfated glycosaminoglycans chondroitin 4-sulfate and heparin, the polysaccharide dextran sulfate, and the trypanocidal drug suramin to be strongly inhibitory on the ganglioside GD1a neuraminidase activity of normal fibroblast homogenates. Regarding chondroitin 4-sulfate, this inhibition was of the non-competitive type. A disulfated tetrasaccharide prepared from chondroitin 4-sulfate, on the other hand, was not at all inhibitory. These and additional findings led us to propose a model for the interaction between enzyme and inhibitor, involving a 'clamping' mechanism by the polysulfated compounds. We conclude that the decreased ganglioside neuraminidase activities of mucopolysaccharidosis fibroblasts are due to an inhibition by the accumulated sulfated glycosaminoglycans and that such inhibition is responsible for the storage of certain gangliosides in the tissues of the patients.

Effects of cell surface ganglioside sialidase inhibition on growth control and differentiation of human neuroblastoma cells.

Gangliosides on the external side of the plasma membrane are important modulators of cellular functions. In previous work we had found that in cultured human SK-N-MC neuroblastoma cells a cell surface sialidase activity specifically cleaved terminal sialic acids from gangliosides, leading to a shift from higher sialylated species to GM1 and a decrease of GM3. To further elucidate the function of the enzyme, we have now examined the consequences of ganglioside sialidase inhibition. When present in the culture medium, the ganglioside sialidase inhibitors 2-deoxy-2,3-dehydro-N-acetylneuraminic acid (NeuAc2en), heparin, and heparan sulfate caused dramatic changes in cell behavior. Thus, the inhibitors uniformly led to a complete release from contact inhibition of growth, and to the loss of the differentiation markers neuron-specific enolase and neurofilaments, and a decrease of cyclic AMP. In presence of NeuAc2en, cells that normally were spread out evenly and were firmly attached, appeared smaller, rounded, and only loosely adherent to the culture vessel. Exogenous addition of vibrio cholerae sialidase mimicked the action of the plasma membrane ganglioside sialidase by retarding cell proliferation and increasing intracellular acetylcholinesterase. That the ganglioside sialidase inhibitors in the culture medium indeed affected solely the cell surface enzyme and not also a lysosomal sialidase, was demonstrated in an experiment where the desialylation of exogenously added radioactive gangliosides was determined in absence and presence of NeuAc2en and NH4Cl, an inhibitor of lysosomal function. Taken together, our results suggest that the ganglioside sialidase on the surface of SK-N-MC cells is responsible for growth control and differentiation in this neuronal cell line.

Desialylation of extracellular GD1a-neoganglioprotein suggests cell surface orientation of the plasma membrane-bound ganglioside sialidase activity in human neuroblastoma cells.

The orientation of the catalytic site of a ganglioside-specific sialidase in the plasma membrane of SK-N-MC neuroblastoma cells was probed using water-soluble GD1a-neoganglioprotein substrate on intact cells and GM1-product detection by cholera toxin B. Desialylation of substrate was readily observed, whereas specific sialidase inhibitors prevented the reaction, and conditioned medium was inactive. Inhibitors of endocytosis and acidification had no effect on substrate degradation, and lowering temperature to 18 degrees C reduced activity but did not abolish it. We conclude that the ganglioside sialidase activity is cell surface-orientated and displays an in situ specificity that mirrors enzyme preparations in vitro.

Splice donor site mutation in the lysosomal neuraminidase gene causing exon skipping and complete loss of enzyme activity in a sialidosis patient.

Sialidosis is a lysosomal storage disease caused by the deficiency of alpha-N-acetylneuraminidase (NEU1; sialidase), the key enzyme for the intralysosomal catabolism of sialylated glycoconjugates. We have identified a homozygous transversion in the last intron (IVSE +1 G>C) in neu1 of a sialidosis patient. Sequencing of the truncated cDNA revealed an alternatively spliced neu1 transcript which lacks the complete sequence of exon 5. Skipping of exon 5 leads to a frameshift and results in a premature termination codon. This is the first description of an intronic point mutation causing a complete deficiency of the lysosomal neuraminidase activity.

Inhibition of lysosomal degradative functions in RPE cells by a retinoid component of lipofuscin.

PURPOSE: To investigate the effect of the lipofuscin component N-retinylidene-N-retinylethanolamine (A2-E) on degradative functions of lysosomes in human retinal pigment epithelial (RPE) cells and to evaluate its mechanism of action. METHODS: A2-E was coupled to low-density lipoprotein (LDL). Human RPE cell cultures were loaded with the A2-E/LDL complex, and controls were run with medium containing LDL alone. To determine whether A2-E accumulated in lysosomes, cells were fractionated in a Percoll gradient, and protein degradation was determined by metabolic labeling and measurement of the release of low-molecular-weight radioactivity. Lysosomal degradation was distinguished from nonlysosomal degradation by inclusion of NH4Cl in the medium. The metabolism of sulfated glycosaminoglycans was studied by radiosulfate incorporation in pulse-chase experiments. Intralysosomal pH was determined using a fluorescent lysosomotropic pH indicator. RESULTS: A2-E accumulated almost exclusively in the lysosomal compartment. Lysosomal protein degradation was reduced in a dose-dependent fashion in A2-E-treated cells. The selectivity of A2-E on lysosomal function was demonstrated by its lack of effect on degradation of extralysosomal protein. Lysosomal glycosaminoglycan catabolism of RPE cells was also strongly inhibited by A2-E. Lysosomal pH was increased by A2-E. CONCLUSIONS: The findings indicate that accumulation of A2-E in RPE cells interferes with lysosomal functions as exemplified by its inhibitory effect on protein and glycosaminoglycan catabolic pathways. The quaternary amine character of the A2-E apparently causes a perturbation of the acidic intralysosomal milieu, resulting in diminished hydrolase action and consequent accumulation of undegraded material. Such mechanism could be operative in retinal diseases associated with excessive lipofuscin accumulation including age-related macular degeneration.

Mucolipidosis I--a sialidosis.

Mucolipidosis I is characterized by Hurler-like features and skeletal dysplasia with a cherry-red macular spot and signs of neurodegeneration involving neuronal cells and myelin. Excessive amounts of sialic acid-containing compounds were found in cultured fibroblasts, leukocytes, and urine of a patient with a clinical phenotype of mucolipidosis I. In cultured fibroblasts, profoundly diminished activity of an alpha-N-acetylneuraminidase (sialidase) was found. Mucolipidosis I thus appears to be a distinct disorder of complex carbohydrate catabolism caused by the genetic deficiency of a neuraminidase.

Methylamine accumulation in cultured cells as a measure of the aqueous storage compartment in the laboratory diagnosis of genetic lysosomal diseases.

Intracellular accumulation of the lysosomotropic compound [14C]methylamine was used to estimate the size of the lysosomal compartment in fibroblasts cultured from patients with a variety of lysosomal storage diseases. In previous work from our laboratory, it was shown that methylamine accumulation was significantly increased in diseases with infantile or juvenile onset and storage of predominantly water-soluble material such as in the mucopolysaccharidoses, mucolipidoses, and oligosaccharidoses. In the present study, methylamine incorporation was abnormally increased in cells from patients with glycogenosis type II and with Niemann-Pick type C disease, whereas it was normal in other sphingolipidoses and in the late-infantile and juvenile forms of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses. The methylamine test was also checked regarding its potential use for prenatal diagnostic testing. In model systems with cultured amniotic or chorionic villus cells, lysosomal storage was experimentally induced by the cathepsin inhibitor leupeptin and was readily detected when compared to untreated controls. Cultured amniotic cells from a fetus with mucopolysaccharidosis II were found to incorporate significantly higher amounts of [14C]methylamine than the normal controls. The results indicate that the methylamine accumulation method is an additional tool in the diagnosis and prenatal diagnosis of lysosomal diseases with abnormal storage of water-soluble material.

Progressive cerebellar ataxia, proximal neurogenic weakness and ocular motor disturbances: hexosaminidase A deficiency with late clinical onset in four siblings.

Tay-Sachs disease is a genetically determined neurodegenerative disorder, resulting from mutations of the hexosaminidase (Hex) A gene coding for the alpha-subunit of beta-D-N-acetyl-hexosaminidase. Clinically, there is severe encephalomyelopathy leading to death within the first few years of life. Hex A activity is usually absent in tissue and body fluids of these patients. Juvenile and adult Hex A deficiencies are less severe but rare variants with some residual Hex A activity. All these variants are most prevalent among Ashkenazi Jews. We describe a non-Jewish family in which four adult brothers and sisters had markedly reduced Hex A activities and onset of symptoms in the second decade of life. The phenotypical expression was remarkably homogeneous, consisting in a combination of slowly progressive motor neuron disease, ataxia and ocular motor disturbances. None of the patients were demented at this stage of their illness. Magnetic resonance studies showed severe cerebellar atrophy, but were otherwise normal. Hex A deficiency was established by biochemical measurements in the serum and skin fibroblasts using the fluorogenic substrates 4-MUG and 4-MUGS as well as by gel electrophoresis. Molecular genetic studies revealed that the patients are compound heterozygotes for the 'adult' mutation Gly269 --> Ser and the 'infantile' 4-base insertion in exon 11 of the Hex A gene.

[14C]Methylamine accumulation in cultured human skin fibroblasts--a biochemical test for lysosomal storage and lysosomal diseases.

Incorporation of the lysosomotropic amine [14C]methylamine by fibroblasts cultured from patients with lysosomal storage diseases and from controls was used to estimate the size of the lysosomal compartment. All cell lines from patients with infantile and juvenile forms of mucopolysaccharidoses, mucolipidoses and oligosacharidoses showed markedly increased radioactivity compared with the normal range of controls. In cells from patients with sphingolipidoses and adult forms of storage diseases, however, methylamine accumulation was not significantly increased. Experimentally induced lysosomal storage by enzyme inhibitors (leupeptin, suramin) also caused increased methylamine accumulation. When the lysosomal pH was determined with fluorescein isothiocyanate-dextran, it was in the range of normal controls (pH 4.7-5.0) in patients cells. Thus, [14C]methylamine accumulation should depend on the volume rather than differences in acidity of the lysosomal compartment and be a measure of its eventual pathological enlargement. We conclude that the determination of [14C]methylamine accumulation in fibroblasts provides a valuable tool in the screening for a variety of lysosomal storage disorders.

Hydroxyl free radicals induce cell differentiation in SK-N-MC neuroblastoma cells.

The SK-N-MC cell line is frequently used as a model of neuronal differentiation induced by 5-bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU). In this study, the differentiation properties of this cell line were investigated under hydroxyl free radical generation, and compared to BrdU treatment. Hydroxyl free radicals were generated in the cultures by the Fenton reaction, i.e. by simultaneous addition of ADP-Fe2+ complex and H2O2. Microscopic morphological signs, as well as the acetylcholinesterase and ganglioside sialidase activities were considered as markers of neuronal differentiation of this cholinergic neuroblastoma cell line. Apart from the altered morphological appearance, the marker enzymes displayed significant increases after both types of intervention. We suggest that hydroxyl free radicals can induce in vitro cell differentiation. They apparently play a more complex role in cell physiology than simply causing oxidative damage.

[Unusual course of alpha-mannosidosis with symptoms of paranoid-hallucinatory psychosis]. / Ungewöhnlicher Verlauf einer alpha-Mannosidose mit Symptomen einer paranoid-halluzinatorischen Psychose.

We report the case of a 27-year-old female with recurrent paranoid-hallucinatory episodes who was initially diagnosed as suffering from schizophrenic psychosis. After 10 years of treatment under this diagnosis, alpha-mannosidosis was identified to be the underlying cause of her psychiatric symptoms. alpha-Mannosidosis is a rare autosomal recessive lysosomal storage disorder associated with decreased activity of the enzyme mannosidase. In the present case, diagnosis was made late in the illness after failure of a response to antipsychotic treatment and with the patient additionally showing progressive cognitive decline. Only after extensive investigation was the diagnosis made by showing decreased alpha-mannosidase enzyme activity in serum and blood leukocytes. This case demonstrates that an unusual clinical course or striking symptom patterns, especially in association with somatic comorbidity, in psychotic patients should lead to diagnostic consideration of inherited metabolic disease.

Specificity studies on the oligosaccharide neuraminidase of human fibroblasts.

Competition and thermal inactivation experiments with different potential natural substrates indicated that in homogenates of human fibroblasts one single enzyme is acting on both (alpha 2-3) and (alpha 2-6) sialosyl linkages of oligosaccharides and glycoproteins, but not of the ganglioside GM3. N-Acetylneuraminic and 2-deoxy-2,3-dehydro-N-acetylneuraminic acids are competitive inhibitors, whereas chondroitin 4-sulphate and the drug Suramin are potent inhibitors of undefined type.

The mucopolysaccharidoses: inborn errors of glycosaminoglycan catabolism.

The mucopolysaccharidoses are genetic disorders of glycosaminoglycan metabolism. Patients with these diseases accumulate within the lysosomes of most tissues excessive amounts of dermatan and/or heparan sulfates, or of keratan sulfate. The clinical consequences of such glycosaminoglycan storage range from skeletal abnormalities to cardiovascular problems, and to motor and mental retardation. In all mucopolysaccharidoses, except Morquio disease, an excessive accumulation of sulfate-labeled glycosaminoglycans has been demonstrated in fibroblasts cultured from the patient's skin. It was subsequently shown that this was due to the deficiency of specific proteins which were named "corrective factors", because their addition to the culture medium effected a normalization of the impaired glycosaminoglycan catabolism in the respective mucopolysaccharidosis fibroblasts. The investigation of the function of the corrective factors, and other studies, led to the identification of the enzymatic defect in each of the mucopolysaccharidoses. Seven lysosomal enzyme deficiencies are now recognized among this group of disorders. A classification of the diseases, according to the mutant gene products, reveals that there is considerable phenotypic variation not only between diseases, but also within several disease types. With the availability of the appropriate enzyme assays, the previous difficulties in diagnosing these disorders have now been overcome. Methods are also available for the prenatal diagnosis, and the detection of heterozygous individuals, in most of the mucopolysaccharidoses. Although correction of the metabolic defect through enzyme replacement has been achieved in tissue culture, many problems remain to be solved before such therapy may become applicable in the patients themselves.

Disorders of glycoprotein degradation.

The intracellular degradation of glycoproteins occurs predominantly in the lysosomes through the concerted action of proteases and glycosidases. Genetic defects in any of the enzymes cleaving the oligosaccharide side chains lead to specific diseases because of an excessive lysosomal accumulation of partially degraded material, mostly oligosaccharides. This paper presents an overview of the biochemistry and the clinical spectrum of this group of diseases including sialidosis, galactosialidosis, alpha- and beta-mannosidosis, fucosidosis, aspartylglucosaminuria, and alpha-N-acetylgalactosaminidase deficiency (Schindler disease). In addition, the sialic acid storage disorder (Salla disease) which is caused by a defect in the lysosomal transport of this acidic monosaccharide is included because of functional and clinical correlations.

Lysosomal and plasma membrane ganglioside GM3 sialidases of cultured human fibroblasts. Differentiation by detergents and inhibitors.

Cultured human fibroblasts contain two sialidases that degrade gangliosides such as GM3: a lysosomal activity that appears identical with the activity towards water-soluble substrates and that is deficient in the genetic lysosomal disorder sialidosis, and another enzyme that seems localized on the external surface of the plasma membrane. In this report we show that both enzymes can be differentiated in the presence of each other by choice of the detergent used for activation, and also by the inhibitory action of some polyanionic compounds such as sulphated glycosaminoglycans. The lysosomal ganglioside GM3 sialidase is greatly stimulated by sodium glycodeoxycholate and, to lesser degrees, by sodium glycocholate and sodium cholate. The ganglioside GM3 sialidase of the plasma membrane is not measurably active under the conditions of the lysosomal enzyme but is specifically activated by the non-ionic detergent Triton X-100. The glycodeoxycholate-stimulated, but not the Triton-activated, ganglioside GM3 sialidase activity was profoundly diminished in cell lines from patients with the lysosomal disorders sialidosis and galactosialidosis; however, both activities were normal in fibroblasts from patients with mucolipidosis IV, previously thought to be a ganglioside sialidase deficiency disorder. Both the lysosomal and the plasma membrane ganglioside GM3 sialidases were inhibited by sialic acids, suramin, dextran sulphate and sulphated glycosaminoglycans. Among the latter, heparin and heparan sulphate showed a much higher inhibitory potency towards the plasma membrane ganglioside GM3 sialidase than towards the lysosomal onw.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The radiographic features of mannosidosis.

Skeletal changes seen in 12 patients with mannosidosis included thickened calvaria, ovoid configuration, flattening and hook-shaped deformity of the vertebral bodies, hypoplasia of the inferior portions of the ilia, and mild expansion of the short tubular bones of the hands. The pattern of skeletal changes is that of mild to moderate dysostosis multiplex with considerable intrafamilial variation. The skeletal abnormalities may decrease with age. Correlation of the skeletal abnormalities with clinical and biochemical findings is necessary for a specific diagnosis.

Prenatal diagnosis of mucolipidosis II (I-cell disease).

A pregnancy at risk for mucolipidosis II (I-cell disease) was monitored in which an affected fetus was predicted on the basis of the analyses of lysosomal hydrolases in amniotic fluid and cultured amniotic fluid cells, and by the demonstration of an excessive accumulation of [35S] sulfate-labeled glycosaminoglycans in cultured amniotic cells. This diagnosis was confirmed by performing enzyme assays and [35S] sulfate incorporation studies on material derived from the aborted fetus.