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Identification of a species‐specific inhibitor of glycosylphosphatidylinositol synthesis
Author(s) -
Sütterlin Christine,
Horvath Anton,
Gerold Peter,
Schwarz Ralph T.,
Wang Ying,
Dreyfuss Michael,
Riezman Howard
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
the embo journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 7.484
H-Index - 392
eISSN - 1460-2075
pISSN - 0261-4189
DOI - 10.1093/emboj/16.21.6374
Subject(s) - biology , identification (biology) , computational biology , ecology
Glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)‐anchoring represents a mechanism for attaching proteins to the cell surface that is used among all eukaryotes. A common core structure, EthN‐P‐Man 3 ‐GlcN‐PI, is synthesized by sequential transfer of sugars and ethanolamine‐P to PI and is highly conserved between organisms. We have screened for natural compounds that inhibit GPI‐anchoring in yeast and have identified a terpenoid lactone, YW3548, that specifically blocks the addition of the third mannose to the intermediate structure Man 2 ‐GlcN‐acylPI. Consistent with the block in GPI synthesis, YW3548 prevents the incorporation of [ 3 H] myo ‐inositol into proteins, transport of GPI‐anchored proteins to the Golgi and is toxic. The compound inhibits the same step of GPI synthesis in mammalian cells, but has no significant activity in protozoa. These results suggest that despite the conserved core structure, the GPI biosynthetic machinery may be different enough between mammalian and protozoa to represent a target for anti‐protozoan chemotherapy.