SURFACE GLYCOCONJUGATES IN DEVELOPMENTAL CELL COHESION

我们的长期目标是了解 糖偶联物有助于细胞内识别和凝聚 利用网鞭毛虫的阿米巴虫聚集的形态发生过程 Discoideum作为模型，假设特定的糖链与 在这种凝聚力中，是识别和对接系统的一部分。主修 目标包括： (1)多聚糖和类似但不活跃的物种的结构分析， 以确定生物活动所需的特征。 (2)细胞与糖偶联物的直接黏附 表面。 (3)对以下假设的检验：葡聚糖是 凝聚过程中的凝聚力，通过与多糖和类似物的扰动， 多聚糖的抗体和化学修饰。 (4)凝聚力、聚集性和生化缺陷的调查 条件糖基化突变体，以检验失败的假设 产生多聚糖将阻止形态发生。 (5)研究其他分子是否也通过以下方式促进凝聚力 多重微扰实验。 (6)用抗体探针鉴定和分离糖蛋白 携带活性葡聚糖，以测试它们携带了 不同的糖蛋白的数量。 (7)通过配基鉴定和分离葡聚糖受体 结合、亲和层析和光亲和标记，以及 确定识别机制是同嗜性的还是 异性恋者。

Our long term goals are to understand mechanisms by which glycoconjugates contribute to intracellular recognition and cohesion in morphogenetic processes, using aggregation of amoebae of Dictyostelium discoideum as the model, hypothesizing that specific glycans implicated in this cohesion are part of a recognition and docking system. Major objectives include: (1) Structural analysis of the glycans and similar but inactive species, to identify features required for biological activity. (2) Demonstration of direct cell adhesion to glycoconjugate-coated surfaces. (3) Tests of the hypothesis that the glycans are the sole basis for cohesion during aggregation, by perturbation with glycans and analogs, antibodies to the glycans and chemical modifications. (4) Investigation of cohesion, aggregation and biochemical defects in conditional glycosylation mutants, to test the hypothesis that failure to generate the glycans will prevent morphogenesis. (5) To examine whether other molecules also contribute to cohesion by multiple perturbant experiments. (6) Use of antibody probes to identify and isolate glycoproteins which carry the active glycans, to test the hypothesis that they carried by a number of distinct glycoproteins. (7) Identification and isolation of receptors for the glycans, by ligand binding, affinity fractionation and photoaffinity labelling, and determination of whether the recognition mechanism is homophilic or heterophilic.