A Database of Drosophila Genes & Genomes

FB2013_03, released May 7th, 2013
 

Reference Report

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Citation Viswanathan, K., Tomiya, N., Park, J., Singh, S., Lee, Y.C., Palter, K., Betenbaugh, M.J. (2006). Expression of a functional Drosophila melanogaster CMP-sialic acid synthetase. Differential localization of the Drosophila and human enzymes.  J. Biol. Chem. 281(23): 15929--15940. (Export to RIS)
FlyBase ID FBrf0192034
Publication Type Research paper
PubMed ID 16537535
PubMed Abstract CMP-N-acetylneuraminic acid is a critical metabolite in the generation of glycoconjugates that play a role in development and other physiological processes. Whereas pathways for its generation are firmly established in vertebrates, the presence and function of the relevant synthetic enzyme in insects and other protostomes is unknown. In this study, we characterize the first functional CMP-sialic acid synthase (DmCSAS) from any protostome lineage expressed from a D. melanogaster cDNA clone. Homologous genes were subsequently identified in other insect species. The gene is developmentally regulated, with expression first appearing at 12-24 h of embryogenesis, low expression through larval and pupal stages, and greatly enriched expression in the adult head, suggesting a possible role in the central nervous system. Activity of the enzyme was verified by an increase in in vitro and in vivo CMP-N-acetylneuraminic acid levels when expressed in a heterologous host. Unlike all known vertebrate CMP-sialic acid synthetase (CSAS) proteins that localize to the nucleus, the D. melanogaster CSAS protein was targeted to the Golgi compartment when expressed in both heterologous mammalian and insect cell lines. Replacement of the N-terminal leader sequence of DmCSAS with the human CSAS N-terminal sequence resulted in the redirection of the chimeric CSAS protein to the nucleus but with a concomitant loss of enzymatic activity. The localization of CSAS orthologs to different intracellular organelles represents, to our knowledge, the first example of differential protein targeting of orthologs in eukaryotes and reveals how the sialylation pathway diverged during the evolution of protostomes and deuterostomes.
DOI 10.1074/jbc.M512186200
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Language of Publication English
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Publication Type Journal
Abbreviation J. Biol. Chem.
Title Journal of Biological Chemistry
Publication Year 1905-
ISBN/ISSN 0021-9258
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