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Keratan Sulfate: Biosynthesis, Structures, and Biological Functions

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Glycosaminoglycans

Part of the book series: Methods in Molecular Biology ((MIMB,volume 1229))

Abstract

Keratan sulfate is a glycosaminoglycan that has been investigated in the cornea and skeletal tissues for decades. Endoglycosidases and monoclonal antibodies specific for keratan sulfate have been developed. These materials have facilitated the analysis of keratan sulfate biosynthesis and structures. Likewise, they have expedited study of the biological roles of keratan sulfate in vitro and in vivo. It has been shown that keratan sulfate is also expressed in the central nervous system and functions as a regulator of neuronal regeneration/sprouting. Here, we describe methods to determine the enzymatic activity of GlcNAc6ST, which is involved in keratan sulfate biosynthesis, and to extract and prepare ocular keratan sulfate for a disaccharide composition analysis. Immunohistochemistry for an anti-keratan sulfate epitope in the brain is also described.

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Acknowledgements

Supported by Japanese Health and Labour Sciences Research Grants [H19-001 and H22-007], Grants-in-Aid from the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture [22790303 and 24590349, and for Scientific Research on Innovative Areas] and in part by the Takeda Science Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biochemistry, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, 65 Tsurumai-cho, Showa-ku, Nagoya, Aichi, 466-8550, Japan

    Kenji Uchimura

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  1. Kenji Uchimura
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Correspondence to Kenji Uchimura .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, USA

    Kuberan Balagurunathan

  2. Department of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development, The University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA

    Hiroshi Nakato

  3. Department of Medicinal Chemistry, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia, USA

    Umesh R. Desai

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Uchimura, K. (2015). Keratan Sulfate: Biosynthesis, Structures, and Biological Functions. In: Balagurunathan, K., Nakato, H., Desai, U. (eds) Glycosaminoglycans. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 1229. Humana Press, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-1714-3_30

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4939-1714-3_30

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  • Publisher Name: Humana Press, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4939-1713-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4939-1714-3

  • eBook Packages: Springer Protocols

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