The E3-20.5K membrane protein of subgroup B human adenoviruses contains O-linked and complex N-linked oligosaccharides.
Subgroup B adenoviruses (Ad3, -7, -11, -35) contain two open reading frames (ORFs) in the early E3 transcription unit that are not present in subgroup C adenoviruses (Ad2, Ad5). The product of one of these ORFs, a 20,500-kDa (20.5K) protein, was shown previously to be expressed as two diffuse 22K and 36K bands on SDS-PAGE; the 22K appeared to be the precursor to the 36K species. As judged by its predicted sequence, 20.5K is a type I membrane glycoprotein with two potential sites for N-glycosylation and a transmembrane domain near its COOH-terminus. Here we show that when Ad3- or Ad7-infected cells were radiolabeled in the presence of tunicamycin, which prevents the addition of N-linked oligosaccharides, both the 22K and the 36K forms of 20.5K showed increased mobility in SDS-PAGE, indicating that both forms contain N-linked sugars. Both the 22K and the 36K forms were sensitive to digestion by endoglycosidase F and N-glycanase, again indicating that they both contain N-linked sugars. Only the 22K species was sensitive to endoglycosidase H, indicating that it contains high-mannose-type oligosaccharides and that the 36K species contains complex-type carbohydrates. The 36K form was sensitive to neuraminidase, indicating that its sugars contain terminal sialic acid. When digested with N-glycanase and neuraminidase, the 36K form was sensitive to O-glycanase, indicating that the 36K form has O-linked oligosaccharides. The 22K form was labeled with [3H]mannose and the 36K form was labeled with [3H]glucosamine and to a much lesser extent by [3H]mannose. Altogether these results indicate that the 20.5K protein is cotranslationally modified with N-linked high-mannose oligosaccharides, then the protein moves into the Golgi and trans-Golgi network where it acquires O-linked and complex N-linked oligosaccharides.