A secreted type of beta1,6 N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase V (GnT-V), a novel angiogenesis inducer, is regulated by gamma-secretase.

Glycosyltransferases are present in the Golgi apparatus in a membrane-bound form and are released from cells after cleavage by certain proteases. Beta1,6-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase V (GnT-V), which is cleaved and secreted from the cells, is involved in the biosynthesis of beta1-6GlcNAc branching on N-glycans and has been implicated in tumor progression and metastasis. We recently reported that a secreted type of GnT-V (soluble GnT-V) itself could promote angiogenesis, which is completely different from its original function as a glycosyltransferase, and this might play a role in tumor invasion. In this study, to explore the molecular basis for this functional glycosyltransferase secretion, its cleavage site was examined and the protease(s) involved in that cleavage were identified. The NH2-terminal protein sequence of purified soluble GnT-V (approximately 100 kDa) from GnT-V-overexpressed cells revealed that its terminus started at His31, located at the boundary position between the transmembrane and stem regions. This secretion was not inhibited by a single amino acid mutation at the cleavage site (Leu29, Leu30 to Asp, His31 to Ala), but specifically inhibited by addition of DFK-167, a gamma-secretase inhibitor, suggesting that gamma-secretase is a plausible protease for secretion processing. In addition, transfection of the gene of familial Alzheimer's disease (FAD)[corrected]-linked presenilin-1, a component of gamma-secretase, increased the secretion rate of endogenous GnT-V; the secretion of soluble GnT-V (approximately 100 kDa) was completely inhibited in presenilin-1/2 double-deficient cells, which have no gamma-secretase activity. Collectively, these results demonstrate that Golgi-resident GnT-V is cleaved at the transmembrane region by gamma-secretase, and this might control tumor angiogenesis through a novel pathway.