Functional characterisation of a putative rhamnogalacturonan II specific xylosyltransferase

Egelund, Jack; Damager, Iben; Faber, Kirsten; Olsen, Carl-Erik; Ulvskov, Peter; Petersen, Bent Larsen

doi:10.1016/j.febslet.2008.08.015

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Volume 582, Issue 21 , Pages 3217-3222, 22 September 2008

Functional characterisation of a putative rhamnogalacturonan II specific xylosyltransferase

Edited by Ulf-Ingo Flügge

Jack Egelund
- Institute of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Aarhus and Center for Pro-Active Plants (VKR), Thorvaldsensvej 40, 1871 Frederiksberg C, Denmark
- Current address: University of Copenhagen, Department of Molecular Biology, Building 4-2-15, Ole Maaløes Vej 5, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark.
- Equal contribution.
Iben Damager
- Institute of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Aarhus and Center for Pro-Active Plants (VKR), Thorvaldsensvej 40, 1871 Frederiksberg C, Denmark
- Equal contribution.
Kirsten Faber
- Institute of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Aarhus and Center for Pro-Active Plants (VKR), Thorvaldsensvej 40, 1871 Frederiksberg C, Denmark
Carl-Erik Olsen
- Department of Natural Sciences, Bioorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen, DK-1871 Frederiksberg C, Denmark
Peter Ulvskov
- Institute of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Aarhus and Center for Pro-Active Plants (VKR), Thorvaldsensvej 40, 1871 Frederiksberg C, Denmark
Bent Larsen Petersen
- Institute of Genetics and Biotechnology, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Aarhus and Center for Pro-Active Plants (VKR), Thorvaldsensvej 40, 1871 Frederiksberg C, Denmark
- Corresponding author. Fax: +45 35 28 25 89.

Received 23 July 2008; received in revised form 13 August 2008; accepted 15 August 2008. published online 26 August 2008.

Abstract

An Arabidopsis thaliana gene, At1g56550, was expressed in Pichia pastoris and the recombinant protein was shown to catalyse transfer of d-xylose from UDP-α-d-xylose onto methyl α-l-fucoside. The product formed was shown by 1D and 2D ¹H NMR spectroscopy to be Me α-d-Xyl-(1,3)-α-l-Fuc, which is identical to the proposed target structure in the A-chain of rhamnogalacturonan II. Chemically synthesized methyl l-fucosides derivatized by methyl groups on either the 2-, 3- or 4 position were tested as acceptor substrates but only methyl 4-O-methyl-α-l-fucopyranoside acted as an acceptor, although to a lesser extent than methyl α-l-fucoside. At1g56550 is suggested to encode a rhamnogalacturonan II specific xylosyltransferase.