A sialoglycoprotein fraction was isolated from chicken erythrocytes by two methods based on the phenol extraction or chloroform/2-propanol extraction of differently prepared erythrocyte membranes. Both preparations gave in SDS-PAGE two major PAS-stained bands (GP2 and GP3), which migrated as 60- and 33-kDa species, respectively, compared to reference proteins, or as 44- and 23-kDa molecules, compared to human glycophorins. Some less abundant slower migrating PAS-stained components, antigenically related to GP2 and GP3, also were detected. No evidence for the presence of antigenically distinct glycoproteins of leukosialin type was obtained. Interconversion in SDS-PAGE, similar carbohydrate composition, and similar antigenic properties of GP2 and GP3 indicated that they are a dimer and monomer, respectively, of the same glycoprotein which shows properties that allow it to be classified as a glycophorin. Lectin binding studies and methylation analysis of beta-elimination products of chicken glycophorin preparation showed the presence of O-glycans and N-glycans. The major O-glycans include sialylated Galbeta1-3GalNAc units and more complex GlcNAc-containing chains. Among the N-glycans, there are complex-type biantennary structures with a bisecting GlcNAc residue, accompanied by chains with additional antennas linked to alpha-mannose residues. A characteristic feature of the chicken glycophorin is a relatively high proportion of N-glycans to O-glycans, compared to the glycophorin A from human erythrocytes.

The peptidic epitopes of 12 anti-GPA and 4 anti-GPC antibodies were identified with the use of peptides synthesized on the pins. Most of the antibodies were specific for epitopes located in extracellular portion of glycophorins, and only 2 anti-GPA and 1 anti-GPC recognized epitopes in their C-terminal cytoplasmic tails. The extracellular GPA epitopes were located in two regions of the polypeptide chain, within a.a. residues 38-44 and 49-58.

Glycophorin A (GPA) of human erythrocytes contains a minor number of unsubstituted GalNAc residues (Tn receptors) which are recognized by Moluccella laevis lectin (MLL). The lectin reacts better with blood group N‐ than M‐type of GPA which suggests a higher number of Tn receptors in GPA‐N than in GPA‐M. To find out whether this difference is restricted to a defined domain of GPA, the N‐terminal tryptic glycopeptides of GPA‐M and GPA‐N (a.a. residues 1–39) and their fragments obtained by degradation with CNBr (a.a. residues 1–8 and 9–39) were analyzed. The untreated and desialylated glycopeptides were tested as inhibitors of MLL in ELISA, and the content of GalNAc‐ol was determined in the products of β‐elimination of the asialoglycopeptides by gas‐liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry. The asialoglycopeptides 1–39 and 1–8 derived from GPA‐N showed about 2 and 4 times higher content of non‐galactosylated GalNAc residues, respectively, and higher reactivity with MLL than their counterparts derived from GPA‐M, while asialoglycopeptides 9–39 of GPA‐M and GPA‐N did not show such differences. These results demonstrate that higher expression of non‐galactosylated GalNAc in GPA‐N than in GPA‐M is confined to GalNAc residues located in the amino‐terminal portion of GPA polypeptide chain, between the blood group M‐ and N‐specific amino acid residues 1 and 5.

Some monoclonal antibodies (MoAbs) directed against blood group M- related epitope of glycophorin A (GPA) were found to agglutinate rare variant erythrocytes carrying GPA of Mg type. In contradistinction to normal GPA-M or -N, the N-terminal portion of GPA-Mg is not glycosylated. Therefore, the multipin peptide synthesis was used for testing the specificity of the cross-reacting MoAbs. Among several anti- M and anti-N MoAbs tested, only three anti-M (E3, E6, 425/2B) agglutinated Mg erythrocytes and showed binding to the synthetic octapeptides corresponding to N-terminal sequences of GPA-M (SSTTGVAM), GPA-N (LSTTEVAM), and GPA-Mg (LSTNEVAM). Testing multiple peptide analogs (window and replacement analysis) showed that these MoAbs were specific for peptidic epitope in which Met8 and Val6 were the most essential amino acid residues. The amino acid replacements Ser<-->Leu1 or Gly<-->Glu5 (M v N) and Thr<-->Asn4 (M and N v Mg) had no or negligible effect on the reaction of synthetic peptides with the MoAbs. However, when Ser2, Thr3, and Thr4 carry O-linked sialooligosaccharides (normal GPA-M or -N), the MoAbs recognize Gly5- and sialic acid- dependent blood group M-related epitope. An interesting finding concerning anti-M/Mg MoAbs described here is the fact that glycosylation of amino acid residues adjacent to the most important part of peptidic epitope not only differentially modulates the proper exposure of peptidic epitope, but also alters the requirement for some amino acid residues present within the epitope. Pathologic conditions, including hematologic disorders, are often accompanied by alterations in protein glycosylation, resulting not only from differences in the structure of antigen polypeptide chain, but also from changes in specificity or expression of enzymes involved in glycosylation. Our present findings draw attention to possibility of the bidirectional modulation of protein antigenicity by glycosylation and may be helpful in interpretation of some results obtained with MoAb used for diagnostic or other purposes.

A simple and efficient method of purification of peanut agglutinin is described. This method involves affinity chromatography on human asialoglycophorin linked to Affi-Gel. One milliliter of the packed adsorbent contained 1.7 mg of covalently linked asialoglycophorin and bound about 6 mg of the peanut agglutinin. From 250 g of row peanuts 510 mg of the electrophoretically homogeneous lectin with high agglutinating activity was obtained.