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Ion-pair high-performance liquid chromatography for determining disaccharide composition in heparin and heparan sulphate.

In this report we describe a convenient and sensitive HPLC method for separating and determining the non- and variously sulphated delta-disaccharides derived from heparan sulphate, heparin and Fragmin, using heparin- and heparan sulphate lyases. This method is superior to others since it can separate and determine twelve different non-, mono-, di- and trisulphated delta-disaccharides containing either N-sulphated, N-acetylated or unsubstituted glucosamine in a single HPLC run. The various types of delta-disaccharides are separated by an ion-pair reversed-phase chromatographic procedure on a Supelcosil LC-18 column, using a binary acetonitrile gradient system with tetrabutylammonium as the ion-pairing reagent. The eluted peaks were recorded by dual wavelength at 232 and 226 nm and a linear detector response was obtained over the entire interval tested, i.e., to 50 micrograms of delta-disaccharides. As little as 0.8-5 ng of delta-disaccharides can be reliably detected and accurately determined. Following separate digestion with the heparin- and heparan sulphate lyases (heparin lyases I, II and III), the characteristic heparin delta-disaccharides in the heparan sulphate chain, as well as the heparan sulphate delta-disaccharides in the heparin polymer, can be identified. Using combined digestions with these three lyases, the glycosaminoglycan chains are degraded almost completely (> 90%) to delta-disaccharides, which are then determined by direct injections into the HPLC system and thus an almost complete spectrum of disaccharide composition can be obtained. By this method, it is possible to analyse and confirm that the heparan sulphate chain is defined as a glycosaminoglycan dominated by GlcNAc(+/- 6S)-GlcA disaccharides and by some copolymeric disaccharides, such as GlcNS-IdoA2S and GlcNS6S-IdoA2S, otherwise most common in heparin. Fragmin, which is a controlled cepolymerized heparin fragment of M(r) 5000, is made up mainly of trisulphated disaccharides of the GlcNS6S-IdoA2S type (88.8%). Using separate digestions with the specific heparin lyases, one can also distinguish between heparin and heparan sulphate.

Acetonitriles↗

Disaccharides derived from heparin or heparan sulfate regulate IL-8 and IL-1 beta secretion by intestinal epithelial cells.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Intestinal epithelial cells can produce cytokines and chemokines that play an important role in the mucosal immune response. Regulation of this secretion is important to prevent inflammatory tissue damage. Disaccharides derived from heparan sulfate and heparin have been shown to down-regulate inflammation in vivo. We tested the effect of such disaccharides on cytokine secretion by intestinal epithelial cells. METHODS: Spontaneous and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha-stimulated interleukin (IL)-8 and IL-1 beta secretion and mRNA expression were assessed in HT-29 and Caco-2 intestinal epithelial cell lines in the presence of a panel of heparin and heparan sulfate disaccharides. RESULTS: Specific disaccharides suppressed spontaneous and TNF-alpha-induced mediator secretion in a dose-dependent manner. Disaccharide activity was structurally restricted. Preincubation of cells with nonsuppressing disaccharides blocked the activity of suppressing disaccharides. The number of sulfate moieties determined the ability of nonsuppressing disaccharides to block the effect of suppressive disaccharides. No suppression of mRNA expression was noted, and intracellular mediator levels were not reduced. CONCLUSIONS: Disaccharides derived from heparin and heparan sulfate regulate proinflammatory mediator secretion from intestinal epithelial cells. Dose dependence and competition by structurally diverging disaccharides suggest a receptor-mediated mechanism. Unchanged mRNA and intracellular mediator levels suggest that the disaccharides act at posttranscriptional stages.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗

Heparin-derived disaccharides modulate proliferation and Erb-B2-mediated signal transduction in colon cancer cell lines.

Organ-specific extracellular matrix (ECM) determines metastasis formation by regulating tumor cell proliferation. Hepatocyte-derived ECM enhances proliferation of colon cancer cell lines by increasing expression of tyrosine kinase receptors of the erb-B family. The active components in the ECM are the heparan sulfates, which are highly heterogeneous in their chemistry and size. We determined the effect of heparan sulfate disaccharides, of defined chemistry and present in high amounts in the liver heparan sulfate chains, on the proliferation of colon cancer cell lines and investigated the mechanism involved. The low-metastatic cell line KM12 was stimulated to proliferate by a highly sulfated disaccharide, found in the highest amounts in hepatocyte-derived heparan sulfate. Growth of the highly metastatic cell line KM12SM was inhibited by the second most common disaccharide in hepatocyte-derived heparan sulfate. The effect of both disaccharides was not accompanied by changes in the expression of erb-B1, erb-B2, erb-B3 or heregulin-alpha. We determined whether the disaccharides modified the signal-transduction pathways mediated by the erb-B receptors. The erb-B2-specific tyrosine kinase inhibitor AG825 abolished the enhancement of KM12 cell proliferation by the stimulatory disaccharide. This disaccharide increased tyrosine phosphorylation of erb-B1 and erb-B2 receptors, effects that were abolished by AG825. Moreover, the disaccharide caused increased expression of cyclin D1 and of activated MAP kinase, again reduced in the presence of the inhibitor AG825. The growth-inhibitory disaccharide reduced phosphorylation of erb-B1, but not of erb-B2, receptors in KM12SM cells. In conclusion, not only hepatocyte-derived heparan sulfate but also disaccharide molecules derived from heparan sulfate can affect colon cancer cell proliferation. Their effect is mediated by modulation of the erb-B signal transduction.

Cell Division↗

Separation of keratan-sulfate-derived disaccharides by high-performance liquid chromatography and postcolumn derivatization with 2-cyanoacetamide and fluorimetric detection.

In this paper, we report a rapid, sensitive, and quantitative procedure to conduct disaccharide compositional analyses of keratan sulfates (KS) by means of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) separation and postcolumn derivatization with 2-cyanoacetamide and fluorimetric detection of products generated by hydrolysis of this glycosaminoglycan with Bacillus sp. keratanase II or Escherichia freundii endo-beta-galactosidase. Following E. freundii endo-beta-galactosidase digestion of bovine corneal KS, the monosulfated disaccharide glcNAc6sbeta(1-->3)gal, accounting for approximately equals 95% nmol and 50% yield products, is produced. On the contrary, bovine corneal KS treated with endo-beta-N-acetylglucosaminidase (keratanase II) from Bacillus sp. generates two major products, the monosulfated disaccharide galbeta(1-->4)glcNAc6s ( approximately equals 50% nmol product) and the disulfated disaccharide gal6sbeta(1-->4)glcNAc6s ( approximately equals 40% nmol product) for over 90% nmol products. These disaccharides are separated and readily determined within 30 min by using a linear-gradient strong anion-exchange separation. A linear relationship was found for the two purified disaccharides over a wide range of concentrations, from approximately equals 108 pmol, 50 ng, to 2,160 pmol, 1,000 ng, for the disaccharide galbeta(1-->4)glcNAc6s, and from 92 pmol, 50 ng, to 1,840 pmol, 1,000 ng, for the disaccharide gal6sbeta(1-->4)glcNAc6s. HPLC analysis was applied to the quantitative and qualitative determination of KS produced by 3T3-J2 murine fibroblasts in the cell medium. The amount of KS was found to be 2.80+/-0.34 microg/ml/10(6) cells and composed of approximately equals 71% nmol of disaccharide galbeta(1-->4)glcNAc6s and 18% nmol of the disulfated disaccharide gal6sbeta(1-->4)glcNAc6s having approximately equals 1.20 sulfate groups/disaccharide. Our data illustrate that the HPLC procedure reported represents an improved approach for the quantitative and compositional microanalyses of KS, especially applicable to experimentation involving small amounts ( approximately 50 ng) of this glycosaminoglycan and in relation to its biological function and pathological importance.

Acetylglucosaminidase↗

Disaccharide compositional analysis of heparin and heparan sulfate using capillary zone electrophoresis.

Capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) was used to separate eight commercial disaccharide standards of the structure delta UA2X(1----4)-D-GlcNY6X (where delta UA is 4-deoxy-alpha-L-threo-hex-4-enopyranosyluronic acid, GlcN is 2-deoxy-2-aminoglucopyranose, S is sulfate, Ac is acetate, X may be S, and Y is S or Ac). These eight disaccharides had been prepared from heparin, heparan sulfate, and derivatized heparins. A similar CZE method was recently reported for the analysis of eight chondroitin and dermatan sulfate disaccharides (A. Al-Hakim and R.J. Linhardt, Anal. Biochem. 195, 68-73, 1991). Two of the standard heparin/heparan sulfate disaccharides, having an identical charge of -2, delta UA2S(1----4)-D-GlcNAc and delta UA(1----4)-D-GlcNS, were not fully resolved using standard sodium borate/boric acid buffer. This buffer had proven effective in separating chondroitin/dermatan sulfate disaccharides of identical charge. Resolution of these two heparin/heparan sulfate disaccharides could be improved by extending the capillary length, preparing the buffer in 2H2O, or eliminating boric acid. Baseline resolution was achieved in sodium dodecyl sulfate in the absence of buffer. The structure and purity of each of the eight new commercial heparin/heparan sulfate disaccharide standards were confirmed using fast-atom-bombardment mass spectrometry and high-field 1H-NMR spectroscopy. Heparin and heparan sulfate were then depolymerized using heparinase (EC 4.2.2.7), heparin lyase II (EC 4.2.2.-), heparinitase (EC 4.2.2.8), and a combination of all three enzymes. CZE analysis of the products formed provided a disaccharide composition of each glycosaminoglycan. As little as 50 fmol of disaccharide could be detected by ultraviolet absorbance.

Carbohydrate Sequence↗

Capillary electrophoresis for the analysis of chondroitin sulfate- and dermatan sulfate-derived disaccharides.

High-voltage capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE) has been used for the first time in the analysis of non-, mono-, di-, and trisulfated disaccharides derived from chondroitin sulfate, dermatan sulfate, and hyaluronic acid. These glycosaminoglycans are first depolymerized using polysaccharide lyases. The resulting unsaturated disaccharide products can be detected by their ultraviolet absorbance at 232 nm. Different retention times were obtained for each unsaturated disaccharide analyzed by CZE. The application of a constant voltage across a 70-cm fused silica capillary using a single, simple buffer system resolved an eight-component mixture within 40 min. Quantitation of disaccharides derived from chondroitin sulfate using chondroitin ABC lyase (EC 4.2.2.4) and mixtures of unsaturated disaccharide standards was possible requiring only picogram quantities of sample. The disaccharides examined had a net charge of from -1 to -4 and were resolved primarily on the basis of net charge and secondarily on the basis of charge distribution. Two unsulfated disaccharides both containing the same unsaturated uronic acid residue were analyzed. One was from chondroitin having an N-acetylgalactosyl residue and one from hyaluronate having an N-acetylglycosyl residue. Despite the fact that they differed only by the chirality at one center, these disaccharides were resolved by CZE. CZE is a fast and simple method that represents a powerful new tool for analysis and separation of acidic disaccharide components of glycosaminoglycans.

Carbohydrate Sequence↗

Preparation of some (1 goes to 6)-linked disaccharides, and their derivatives suitable for protein modification.

Synthetic methods for the preparation of per-O-acetylated, (1 goes to 6)-linked disaccharides containing either a D-galactose or a D-glucose residue at the reducing end are described. In these methods, 1,2,3,4-tetra-O-acetyl-6-O-trityl-beta-D-glucopyranose was first converted into 1,2,3,4-tetra-O-acetyl-beta-D-glucopyranose (1) by rapid treatment with 90% trifluoroacetic acid, followed by rapid isolation designed to minimize O-acyl migration. Disaccharides acid, followed by rapid isolation designed to minimize )-acyl migration. Disaccharides were formed by glycosylation of 1 or 1,2:3,4-di-O-isopropylidene-D-galactopyranose with per-O-acetylglycosyl halides. Isopropylidene groups in the resulting disaccharide, if present were removed, and the disaccharide was per-O-acetylated. Per-O-acetylated beta-Gal-(1 goes to 6)-Glc and beta-GlcNAc-(1 goes to 6)-Gal, and a mixture of per-O-acetylated alpha-Gal-(1 goes to 6)-Gal and beta-Gal-(1 goes to 6)-Gal (in the ratio of 3:7) were thus obtained. The per-O-acetylated Gal-(1 goes to 6)-Gal disaccharides were converted, by a reaction sequence previously reported, into (2,2-dimethoxyethyl)aminocarbonylmethyl 1-thio-beta-D-glycosides, which could then be coupled to proteins via reductive alkylation. For the anomeric mixture of per-O-acetylated Gal-(1 goes to 6(-Gal, conversion into the corresponding 1-thioglycoside permitted resolution of the isomers by chromatography on silica gel. When disaccharides, as borate complexes, were chromatographed on a column of a strong, anion-exchange resin, all of the (1 goes to 6)-linked disaccharides of neutral sugars tested (including melibiose) were eluted later than analogous disaccharides having other linkages, and also later than any neutral monosaccharides.

Acetylation↗

Liquid chromatographic assay for constituent disaccharides of hyaluronic acid and chondroitin sulphate isomers.

An improved high-performance liquid chromatographic (HPLC) method for unsaturated disaccharides prepared from hyaluronic acid and various chondroitin sulphate and dermatan sulphate isomers was developed, which involves an ion-exchange resin prepared from a sulphonated styrene-divinylbenzene copolymer. The retention times of the individual unsaturated disaccharides were unique and reproducible, the disaccharides appearing in the following order: unsaturated non-sulphated disaccharide derived from hyaluronic acid, then unsaturated 6-sulphated, non-sulphated and 4-sulphated disaccharides from chondroitin sulphate isomers. Unsaturated disulphated disaccharide G had a much shorter retention time than the unsaturated non-sulphated disaccharide derived from hyaluronic acid. The contents of these individual unsaturated disaccharides could be determined with similar sensitivities on the basis of their ultraviolet absorbance. Selective and unique retention times and good resolutions were found for various unsaturated disulphated and trisulphated disaccharides. The proposed method can be used to determine various chondroitin sulphate and dermatan sulphate isomers in addition to hyaluronic acid in amounts as small as 100 ng to 8 micrograms. The practicality of this method was verified by its application to the separation and determination of the different types of chondroitin sulphate and dermatan sulphate isomers derived from human arteries in the presence of appreciable amounts of hyaluronic acid.

Arteries↗

Disaccharide composition of heparan sulfates: brain, nervous tissue storage organelles, kidney, and lung.

We have characterized the structural properties of heparan sulfates from brain and other tissues after depolymerization with a mixture of three heparin and heparan sulfate lyases from Flavobacterium heparinum. The resulting disaccharides were separated by HPLC and identified by comparison with authentic standards. In rat, rabbit, and bovine brain, 46-69% of the heparan sulfate disaccharides are N-acetylated and unsulfated, and 17-21% contain a single sulfate residue in the form of a sulfoamino group. In rabbit, bovine, and 1-day postnatal rat brain, disaccharides containing both a sulfated uronic acid and N-sulfate account for an additional 10-14%, together with smaller and approximately equal proportions (5-9%) of mono-, di-, and trisulfated disaccharides having sulfate at the 6-position of the glucosamine residue. Kidney and lung heparan sulfates are distinguished by high concentrations of disaccharides containing 6-sulfated N-acetylglucosamine residues. In chromaffin granules, the catecholamine- and peptide-storing organelles of adrenal medulla, where heparan sulfate accounts for a minor portion (5-10%) of the glycosaminoglycans, we have determined that bovine chromaffin granule membranes contain heparan sulfate in which almost all of the disaccharides are either unsulfated (71%) or monosulfated (18%). In sympathetic nerves, norepinephrine is stored in large dense cored vesicles that in biochemical composition and properties closely resemble adrenal chromaffin granules. However, in contrast to chromaffin granules, heparan sulfate accounts for approximately 75% of the total glycosaminoglycans in large dense-cored vesicles and more closely resembles heparin, insofar as it contains only 21% unsulfated disaccharides, 10% mono- and disulfated disaccharides, and 69% trisulfated disaccharides.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Aging↗

Nonabsorbable disaccharides for hepatic encephalopathy.

BACKGROUND: Nonabsorbable disaccharides (lactulose or lactitol) are considered the treatment of choice for hepatic encephalopathy. OBJECTIVES: To assess the beneficial and harmful effects of nonabsorbable disaccharides for patients with hepatic encephalopathy. SEARCH STRATEGY: Trials were identified through The Cochrane Hepato-Biliary Group Controlled Trials Register (March 2003), The Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (Issue 1, 2003), MEDLINE (1966 to 2003/03), EMBASE (1980 to 2003/03), manual searches of bibliographies and journals, authors of trials, and pharmaceutical companies. SELECTION CRITERIA: Randomised trials comparing lactulose or lactitol versus no intervention, placebo, or antibiotics and trials comparing lactulose versus lactitol for hepatic encephalopathy. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: The primary outcome measures included no improvement of hepatic encephalopathy and all-cause mortality. Binary outcomes are reported as relative risks (RR) based on a random effects model. Subgroup analyses were performed with regard to methodological quality and form of hepatic encephalopathy. MAIN RESULTS: Thirty trials assessed nonabsorbable disaccharides versus placebo, no intervention, or antibiotics or assessed lactulose versus lactitol. We could not extract data from all trials. Compared with placebo or no intervention, nonabsorbable disaccharides had no statistically significant effect on mortality (RR 0.41, 95% CI 0.02 to 8.68, four trials), but appeared to reduce the risk of no improvement of hepatic encephalopathy (RR 0.62, 95% CI 0.46 to 0.84, six trials). However, this result may reflect bias due to low methodological quality of the majority of included trials. Trials of high methodological quality found no significant effect of nonabsorbable disaccharides on the risk of no improvement (RR 0.92, 95% CI 0.42 to 2.04, two trials). We found no statistically significant difference between lactulose and lactitol on mortality (two trials) or risk of no improvement (four trials). However, our meta-analyses were underpowered to establish whether these treatments have comparable effect. Nonabsorbable disaccharides appeared to be inferior to antibiotics on reducing the risk of no improvement (RR 1.24, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.50, 10 trials). REVIEWERS' CONCLUSIONS: This systematic review questions the beneficial effects of nonabsorbable disaccharides and highlights that there is insufficient high-quality evidence to support this treatment. We found that antibiotics appeared to be superior to nonabsorbable disaccharides in improving hepatic encephalopathy, but it is unclear whether this difference in treatment effect is clinically important to patients. Nonabsorbable disaccharides should not serve as comparator in randomised trials on hepatic encephalopathy.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗

Hydroxymethyl rotamer populations in disaccharides.

Sixteen methyl glucopyranosyl glucopyranoside disaccharides (methyl beta-d-Glcp(p-Br-Bz)-(1-->x)-beta/alpha-d-Glcp) containing beta-glycosidic linkages (1-->2, 1-->3, 1-->4, and 1-->6) were synthesized and analyzed by means of CD and NMR spectroscopy in three different solvents. For each of these four types of disaccharides, a correlation was observed between the hydroxymethyl rotational populations around the C5-C6 bond of the glucopyranosyl residue II with the substituents and the anomeric configuration of the methoxyl group in residue I, as well as with the solvent. Nonbonded interactions, the stereoelectronic exo-anomeric effect, and hydrogen bonding were found to be responsible for the observed rotameric differences. Whereas the rotational populations of the (1-->6)-linked disaccharides are mainly dependent on the exo-anomeric effect, the (1-->2)-bonded disaccharides are strongly dependent on the anomeric configuration at C1, and the (1-->3)- and (1-->4)-linked disaccharides are mainly dependent on the substituents and the solvent. The population of the gt rotamer decreases as nonbonded interactions increase but increases as the exo-anomeric effect becomes greater, as well as in the presence of intramolecular hydrogen bonding to the endocyclic oxygen O5'. Comparison of the hydroxymethyl rotational preferences between our model disaccharides revealed a dependence on the glycosidic linkage type. Thus the population of the gg and gt rotamers decreases/increases from (1-->2)- (beta series), to (1-->6)-, to (1-->2)- (alpha series), to (1-->4)-, and to (1-->3)-bonded disaccharides respectively, while the tg rotamer population remains almost constant (around 20%), except for the (1-->3)- and (1-->4)-linked disaccharides with the intramolecular hydrogen bonding to O5', where this population decreases to 10%.

Carbohydrate Conformation↗

13C-NMR relation study of heparin-disaccharide interactions with tripeptides GRG and GKG.

Heparin is a polydisperse sulphated copolymer consisting mostly of 1-->4 linked glucosamine and uronic acid residues, i.e. 2-deoxy-2-sulphamido-D-glucopyranose 6-sulphate and L-idopyranosyluronic acid 2-sulphate. 13C NMR has been used to study the interactions of heparinase-derived and purified heparin disaccharide with N- and C-terminally-blocked tripeptides GRG and GKG. Titration of the disaccharide with peptide indicates that GRG binds the disaccharide more strongly than does GKG, with interactions in either case being stronger at uronate ring positions. In the presence of GRG, a carboxylate pKa depression suggests electrostatic interactions between the arginine guanidinium group and the uronate carboxylate group. 13C relaxation data have been acquired for all disaccharide and peptide carbons in the presence and absence of GRG and GKG. 13C relaxation rates for the disaccharide are significantly faster in the presence of peptide, especially with GRG. Analysis of these relaxation data has been done in terms of molecular diffusion constants, D [symbol: see text] and D parallel, and an angle alpha between D parallel and a molecular frame defined by the moment of inertia tensor calculated for an internally rigid disaccharide. Disaccharide conformational space in these calculations has been sampled for both uronate half-chair forms (2H1 and 1H2) and over a range of glycosidic bond angles defined by motional order parameters and inter-residue nuclear Overhauser effects (+/- 30 degree from the average). In the absence of peptide, the ratio D [symbol: see text] /D parallel falls between 0.4 and 0.7; therefore molecular diffusion occurs preferentially about D parallel, which runs through both disaccharide rings. In the presence of peptide, D [symbol: see text] /D parallel is decreased, indicating that GRG is oriented along D parallel and proximal to the uronic acid ring. A model for this is shown.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Disaccharides as a new class of nonaccumulated osmoprotectants for Sinorhizobium meliloti.

Sucrose and ectoine (1,4,5,6-tetrahydro-2-methyl-4-pyrimidine carboxylic acid) are very unusual osmoprotectants for Sinorhizobium meliloti because these compounds, unlike other bacterial osmoprotectants, do not accumulate as cytosolic osmolytes in salt-stressed S. meliloti cells. Here, we show that, in fact, sucrose and ectoine belong to a new family of nonaccumulated sinorhizobial osmoprotectants which also comprises the following six disaccharides: trehalose, maltose, cellobiose, gentiobiose, turanose, and palatinose. Also, several of these disaccharides were very effective exogenous osmoprotectants for strains of Rhizobium leguminosarum biovars phaseoli and trifolii. Sucrose and trehalose are synthesized as endogenous osmolytes in various bacteria, but the other five disaccharides had never been implicated before in osmoregulation in any organism. All of the disaccharides that acted as powerful osmoprotectants in S. meliloti and R. leguminosarum also acted as very effective competitors of [14C]sucrose uptake in salt-stressed cultures of these bacteria. Conversely, disaccharides that were not osmoprotective for S. meliloti and R. leguminosarum did not inhibit sucrose uptake in these bacteria. Hence, disaccharide osmoprotectants apparently shared the same uptake routes in these bacteria. Natural-abundance 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and quantification of cytosolic solutes demonstrated that the novel disaccharide osmoprotectants were not accumulated to osmotically significant levels in salt-stressed S. meliloti cells; rather, these compounds, like sucrose and ectoine, were catabolized during early exponential growth, and contributed indirectly to enhance the cytosolic levels of two endogenously synthesized osmolytes, glutamate and the dipeptide N-acetylglutaminylglutamine amide. The ecological implication of the use of these disaccharides as osmoprotectants is discussed.

Amino Acids, Diamino↗

Non-absorbable disaccharides for hepatic encephalopathy: systematic review of randomised trials.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effects of non-absorbable disaccharides (lactulose and lactitol) in patients with hepatic encephalopathy. DATA SOURCES: Cochrane Hepato-Biliary Group controlled trials register, Cochrane Library, Medline, and Embase until March 2003; reference lists of relevant articles; authors and pharmaceutical companies. REVIEW METHODS: Randomised trials that compared non-absorbable disaccharides with placebo, no intervention, or antibiotics for hepatic encephalopathy were included. The primary outcome measures were no improvement of hepatic encephalopathy and all cause mortality. RESULTS: 22 trials were included. Compared with placebo or no intervention, non-absorbable disaccharides seemed to reduce the risk of no improvement in patients with hepatic encephalopathy (relative risk 0.62, 95% confidence interval 0.46 to 0.84, six trials). However, high quality trials found no significant effect (0.92, 0.42 to 2.04, two trials). Compared with placebo or no intervention, non-absorbable disaccharides had no significant effect on mortality (0.41, 0.02 to 8.68, four trials). Non-absorbable disaccharides were inferior to antibiotics in reducing the risk of no improvement (1.24, 1.02 to 1.50, 10 trials) and lowering blood ammonia concentration (weighted mean difference 2.35 micromol/l, 0.06 micromol/l to 13.45 micromol/l, 10 trials). There was no significant difference in mortality (0.90, 0.48 to 1.67, five trials). CONCLUSIONS: There is insufficient evidence to support or refute the use of non-absorbable disaccharides for hepatic encephalopathy. Antibiotics were superior to non-absorbable disaccharides in improving hepatic encephalopathy, but it is unclear whether this difference is clinically important. Non-absorbable disaccharides should not serve as comparator in randomised trials on hepatic encephalopathy.

Anti-Infective Agents↗

Quantification of isomers from a mixture of twelve heparin and heparan sulfate disaccharides using tandem mass spectrometry.

Heparin/heparan sulfate-like glycosaminoglycans (HSGAGs) have been implicated in clinically relevant processes such as hemostasis, infection, development, and cancer progression, through their interactions with proteins. Electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) and tandem mass spectrometry (MSn) were combined to identify and quantify 12 HSGAG disaccharides that can be generated by enzymatic depolymerization with heparin lyases. This technique includes free amine-containing disaccharides that had previously been observed in MSn but not quantified. Our methods use diagnostic product ions from MSn spectra of up to three isomeric disaccharides at once, and up to three sequential stages of MSn in tandem, for the quantitative analysis of the relative percentage of each of these isomers. The isomer quantification was validated using mock mixtures and showed acceptable accuracy and precision. These methods may be applied to the quantification of other isomers by MSn. While each of the 12 disaccharides alone had a linear response to an internal standard in the MS1 spectra, the individual response factors did not remain constant when the concentrations of the other 11 disaccharides in the mixtures fluctuated, due to competition for electrospray ionization. The absolute concentration of one fluctuating isomer was determined out of a constant mixture of the other disaccharides. The rapid, accurate, and sensitive quantification of all isomeric disaccharides may contribute to the eventual sequencing of longer saccharides by MSn, enabling the elucidation of the structure-function relationships of HSGAGs.

Disaccharides↗

Analysis of polysulfated chondroitin disaccharides by high-performance liquid chromatography.

A high-performance liquid chromatography method for analyzing disaccharides derived from chondroitin sulfate glycosaminoglycans has been developed which employs a Whatman Partisil-10 PAC amino-cyano column and an acetonitrile/methanol/ammonium acetate solvent to resolve disulfated, monosulfated, and unsulfated disaccharides in a chromatographic run of less than 20 min. The single known trisulfated chrondroitin disaccharide can be eluted in an alternate solvent system containing the same mobile phase components in different proportions. Disaccharides were prepared for chromatography from glycosaminoglycans and proteoglycans of known compositions by digestion with chondroitinase ABC, with the exception of king crab cartilage glycosaminoglycan which was incubated sequentially with hyaluronidase and chondroitinase ABC. Disaccharides were extracted from the digestion mixtures in 80% ethanol, dried over nitrogen, resuspended in the HPLC solvent, and chromatographed at a flow rate of 1 ml/min. Unsaturated disaccharides in the column eluate were detected by continuous ultraviolet absorbance monitoring at 232 nm; alternatively, fractions were collected and assayed for uronic acid content or radioactivity. By utilizing the HPLC technique in conjunction with chondroitinase ABC and AC digestion and sulfatase hydrolysis, the epimeric structures of chondroitin sulfates E and H were confirmed. With this technique, rapid and reproducible analyses of chondroitin sulfate disaccharides generated from mouse mast cell proteoglycan and from glycosaminoglycans of squid cranial cartilage, shark skin, hagfish skin, and hagfish notocord were in close agreement with compositions obtained by other techniques.

Animals↗

Constant and variable domains of different disaccharide structure in corneal keratan sulphate chains.

Four peptidokeratan sulphate fractions of different Mr and degree of sulphation were cut from the pig corneal keratan sulphate distribution spectrum. After exhaustive digestion with keratanase, the fragments were separated on DEAE-Sephacel and Bio-Gel P-10 and analysed for their Mr, degree of sulphation and amino sugar and neutral sugar content. It was found that every glycosaminoglycan chain is constructed of a constant domain of non-sulphated and monosulphated disaccharide units and a variable domain of disulphated disaccharide units. Total neuraminic acid of the four peptidokeratan sulphates was recovered from their isolated linkage-region oligosaccharides. In kinetic studies, the four peptidokeratan sulphates were investigated for Mr distribution after various incubation times with keratanase. There was a continuous shift towards lower Mr and no appearance of a distinct intermediate-sized product at any degradation time. The linkage-region oligosaccharide was already being liberated after a very short incubation period. From the results of these kinetic investigations in connection with the results of neuraminic acid analyses it is suggested that there exists only one disaccharide chain per peptidokeratan sulphate molecule. A model of corneal keratan sulphate is postulated. One of the alpha-mannose residues in the linkage region is bound to an oligosaccharide consisting of a lactosamine and a terminal sialic acid. The other alpha-mannose residue is attached to the disaccharide chain. This chain contains one or two non-sulphated disaccharide units at the reducing end, followed by 10-12 monosulphated disaccharide units. The disulphated disaccharide moiety of variable length is positioned at the non-reducing end of the chain.

Animals↗

Purification and characterization of a mannose-containing disaccharide obtained from human pregnancy urine. A new immunoregulatory saccharide.

Endogenous mammalian lectin-like sugar-binding molecules have been previously described that have immunoregulatory properties. Further, the addition of defined simple saccharides to lymphocyte cultures has been shown to inhibit a variety of in vitro lymphocyte functions, presumably because these sugars are able to compete with the binding of endogenous lectins to critical membrane receptors. In this report, we describe the isolation and characterization of a D-mannose-containing disaccharide in human pregnancy urine that inhibits the proliferative response of human T lymphocytes. The inhibitory disaccharide was purified to homogeneity by sequential steps including affinity chromatography on immobilized concanavalin A and molecular sizing on Sephadex G-75 and then Fractogel 40S columns, with final purification on high-performance thin-layer chromatography. By mass spectrometry of the purified material as its permethylated derivative, the deduced structure of this compound was alpha-D-Manp 1-6-D-Man. To confirm that this disaccharide was in fact immunosuppressive, an identical disaccharide was prepared by sequential digestion of yeast cell wall polysaccharide. The urinary and yeast disaccharides had identical immunosuppressive properties. It has been previously reported that D-mannose is inhibitory for antigen-specific proliferative assays in the range of 10-50 mM. The purified alpha-D-Manp 1-6-D-Man disaccharide was inhibitory at 100-fold-lower concentrations. Further, while D-mannose inhibits T cell proliferation when added at anytime up to 24 h before harvest of a 6-d lymphocyte culture, alpha-D-Manp 1-6-D-Man disaccharide was inhibitory only if added at the initiation of culture and had no inhibitory effect if added just 24 h later. These data support the concept that simple sugar compounds can exhibit marked immunoregulatory activity in vitro. The impact of these molecules on the regulation of immune responses in vivo is unknown, as is their precise mechanism of action, but structural and chemical identification should now permit a detailed analysis of these issues.

Chromatography, Affinity↗