Core 1-derived mucin-type O-glycans (O-glycans) are a major component of gastric mucus with an unclear role. To address this, we generated mice lacking gastric epithelial O-glycans (GEC C1galt1-/-). ...GEC C1galt1-/- mice exhibited spontaneous gastritis that progressed to adenocarcinoma with ∼80% penetrance by 1 yr. GEC C1galt1-/- gastric epithelium exhibited defective expression of a major mucus forming O-glycoprotein Muc5AC relative to WT controls, which was associated with impaired gastric acid homeostasis. Inflammation and tumorigenesis in GEC C1galt1-/- stomach were concurrent with activation of caspases 1 and 11 (Casp1/11)-dependent inflammasome. GEC C1galt1-/- mice genetically lacking Casp1/11 had reduced gastritis and gastric cancer progression. Notably, expression of Tn antigen, a truncated form of O-glycan, and CASP1 activation was associated with tumor progression in gastric cancer patients. These results reveal a critical role of O-glycosylation in gastric homeostasis and the protection of the gastric mucosa from Casp1-mediated gastric inflammation and cancer.
Colon mucus segregates the intestinal microbiota from host tissues, but how it organizes to function throughout the colon is unclear. In mice, we found that colon mucus consists of two distinct ...O-glycosylated entities of Muc2: a major form produced by the proximal colon, which encapsulates the fecal material including the microbiota, and a minor form derived from the distal colon, which adheres to the major form. The microbiota directs its own encapsulation by inducing Muc2 production from proximal colon goblet cells. In turn, O-glycans on proximal colon-derived Muc2 modulate the structure and function of the microbiota as well as transcription in the colon mucosa. Our work shows how proximal colon control of mucin production is an important element in the regulation of host-microbiota symbiosis.
Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a chronic inflammatory bowel disease characterized by defective intestinal barrier integrity toward the microbiota and epithelial damage. Double cortin-like kinase 1 ...(Dclk1), a marker of intestinal tuft cells, can regulate tissue regenerative responses, but its role in epithelial repair during bacterial-dependent chronic colitis is unclear. We addressed this question using our recently developed mouse model of spontaneous microbiota-dependent colitis induced by mucin-type O-glycan deficiency (DKO), which recapitulates most features of human UC. We generated DKO mice lacking intestinal epithelial Dclk1 (DKO;Dclk1
) and analyzed colitis onset and severity using clinical and histologic indices, immune responses by qPCR and immunostaining, and epithelial responses using proliferation markers and organoid culture. We found 3-4-week-old DKO;Dclk1
mice developed worsened spontaneous colitis characterized by reduced body weight, loose stool, severe colon thickening, epithelial lesions, and inflammatory cell infiltrates compared with DKO mice. The primary defect was an impaired epithelial proliferative response during inflammation. Dclk1 deficiency also reduced inflammation-induced proliferation and growth of colon organoids ex vivo. Mechanistically, Dclk1 expression was important for inflammation-induced Cox2 expression and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production in vivo, and PGE2 rescued proliferative defects in Dclk1-deficient colonic organoids. Although tuft cells were expanded in both DKO and DKO;Dclk1
relative to WT mice, loss of Dclk1 was associated with reduced tuft cell activation (i.e., proliferation) during inflammation. Similar results were found in DKO vs. DKO;Dclk1
mice at 3-6 months of age. Our results support that tuft cells, via Dclk1, are important responders to bacterial-induced colitis by enhancing epithelial repair responses, which in turn limits bacterial infiltration into the mucosa.
Most platelet membrane proteins are modified by mucin-type core 1-derived glycans (O-glycans). However, the biological importance of O-glycans in platelet clearance is unclear. Here, we generated ...mice with a hematopoietic cell-specific loss of O-glycans (HC C1galt1
−/−). These mice lack O-glycans on platelets and exhibit reduced peripheral platelet numbers. Platelets from HC C1galt1
−/− mice show reduced levels of α-2,3-linked sialic acids and increased accumulation in the liver relative to wild-type platelets. The preferential accumulation of HC C1galt1
−/− platelets in the liver was reduced in mice lacking the hepatic asialoglycoprotein receptor Ashwell–Morell receptor (AMR). However, we found that Kupffer cells are the primary cells phagocytosing HC C1galt1
−/− platelets in the liver. Our results demonstrate that hepatic AMR promotes preferential adherence to and phagocytosis of desialylated and/or HC C1galt1
−/− platelets by the Kupffer cell through its C-type lectin receptor CLEC4F. These findings provide insights into an essential role for core 1 O-glycosylation of platelets in their clearance in the liver.
Background & Aims Core 1– and core 3–derived mucin-type O-linked oligosaccharides (O-glycans) are major components of the colonic mucus layer. Defective forms of colonic O-glycans, such as Tn ...antigen, frequently are observed in patients with ulcerative colitis and colorectal cancer, but it is not clear if they contribute to pathogenesis. We investigated whether and how impaired O-glycosylation contributes to the development of colitis-associated colorectal cancer using mice lacking intestinal core 1– and core 3–derived O -glycans. Methods We generated mice that lack the core 1– and core 3–derived intestinal O-glycans (DKO mice) and analyzed them, along with mice that lack the intestinal epithelial core 1 O-glycans (IEC C1galt1 - /- mice) or mice that lack core 3 O-glycans (C3 Gnt-/- mice). Intestinal tissues were collected at different time points and analyzed for levels of mucin and Tn antigen, development of colitis, and tumor formation using imaging, quantitative polymerase chain reaction, immunoblot, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay techniques. We also used cellular and genetic approaches, as well as intestinal microbiota depletion, to identify inflammatory mediators and pathways that contribute to disease in DKO and wild-type littermates (controls). Results Intestinal tissues from DKO mice contained higher levels of Tn antigen and had more severe spontaneous chronic colitis than tissues from intestinal epithelial cell (IEC) C1galt1 - /- mice, whereas spontaneous colitis was absent in C3GnT - /- and control mice. IEC C1galt1 - /- mice and DKO mice developed spontaneous colorectal tumors, although the onset of tumors in the DKO mice occurred earlier (age, 8–9 mo) than that in IEC C1galt1 -/- mice (approximately age 12 months). Antibiotic depletion of the microbiota did not cause loss of Tn antigen but did reduce the development of colitis and cancer formation in DKO mice. Colon tissues from DKO mice, but not control mice, contained active forms of caspase 1 and increased caspase 11, which were reduced after antibiotic administration. Supernatants from colon tissues of DKO mice contained increased levels of interleukin-1β and interleukin-18, compared with those from control mice. Disruption of the caspase 1 and caspase 11 genes in DKO mice (DKO/ Casp 1/11 - /- mice) decreased the development of colitis, characterized by reduced colonic thickening, hyperplasia, and inflammatory infiltrate, compared with DKO mice. Conclusions Impaired expression of O-glycans causes colonic mucus barrier breach and subsequent microbiota-mediated activation of caspase 1–dependent inflammasomes in colonic epithelial cells of mice. These processes could contribute to colitis-associated colon cancer in human beings.
Mucin-type O-linked oligosaccharides (O-glycans) are primary components of the intestinal mucins that form the mucus gel layer overlying the gut epithelium. Impaired expression of intestinal ...O-glycans has been observed in patients with ulcerative colitis (UC), but its role in the etiology of this disease is unknown. Here, we report that mice with intestinal epithelial cell-specific deficiency of core 1-derived O-glycans, the predominant form of O-glycans, developed spontaneous colitis that resembled human UC, including massive myeloid infiltrates and crypt abscesses. The colitis manifested in these mice was also characterized by TNF-producing myeloid infiltrates in colon mucosa in the absence of lymphocytes, supporting an essential role for myeloid cells in colitis initiation. Furthermore, induced deletion of intestinal core 1-derived O-glycans caused spontaneous colitis in adult mice. These data indicate a causal role for the loss of core 1-derived O-glycans in colitis. Finally, we detected a biosynthetic intermediate typically exposed in the absence of core 1 O-glycan, Tn antigen, in the colon epithelium of a subset of UC patients. Somatic mutations in the X-linked gene that encodes core 1 β1,3-galactosyltransferase-specific chaperone 1 (C1GALT1C1, also known as Cosmc), which is essential for core 1 O-glycosylation, were found in Tn-positive epithelia. These data suggest what we believe to be a new molecular mechanism for the pathogenesis of UC.
During early embryonic development in mammals, including humans and mice, megakaryocytes (Mks) first originate from primitive hematopoiesis in the yolk sac. These embryonic Mks (eMks) circulate in ...the vasculature with unclear function. Herein, we report that podoplanin (PDPN), the ligand of C-type lectin-like receptor (CLEC-2) on Mks/platelets, is temporarily expressed in neural tissue during midgestation in mice. Loss of PDPN or CLEC-2 resulted in aneurysms and spontaneous hemorrhage, specifically in the lower diencephalon during midgestation. Surprisingly, more eMks/platelets had enhanced granule release and localized to the lower diencephalon in mutant mouse embryos than in wild-type littermates before hemorrhage. We found that PDPN counteracted the collagen-1–induced secretion of angiopoietin-1 from fetal Mks, which coincided with enhanced TIE-2 activation in aneurysm-like sprouts of PDPN-deficient embryos. Blocking platelet activation prevented the PDPN-deficient embryo from developing vascular defects. Our data reveal a new role for PDPN in regulating eMk function during midgestation.
•Heightened activation of eMks/platelets cause formation of aneurysms in developing brains of mice lacking PDPN.•PDPN lessens collagen-1–induced secretion of angiopoietin-1 from eMks, preventing detrimental TIE-2 activation in sprouting endothelium.
Display omitted
The kidney's filtration activity is essential for removing toxins and waste products from the body. The vascular endothelial cells of the glomerulus are fenestrated, flattened, and surrounded by ...podocytes, specialized cells that support glomerular endothelial cells. Mucin-type core 1–derived O-glycans (O-glycans) are highly expressed on both glomerular capillary endothelial cells and their supporting podocytes, but their biological role is unclear. Biosynthesis of core 1–derived O-glycans is catalyzed by the glycosyltransferase core 1 β1,3-galactosyltransferase (C1galt1). Here we report that neonatal or adult mice with inducible deletion of C1galt1 (iC1galt1−/−) exhibit spontaneous proteinuria and rapidly progressing glomerulosclerosis. Ultrastructural analysis of the glomerular filtration barrier components revealed that loss of O-glycans results in altered podocyte foot processes. Further analysis indicated that O-glycan is essential for the normal signaling function of podocalyxin, a podocyte foot process–associated glycoprotein. Our results reveal a new function of O-glycosylation in the integrity of the glomerular filtration barrier.
PDF
