Characterization of mineral-binding 40-kDa glycoprotein extracted from young adult rabbit alveolar bone

A forty-kilodalton (40-kDa) protein was extracted from alveolar bone of young adult rabbit with 0.5 M EDTA after extraction with 4 M GuHCl, and purified by gel-filtration, anion-exchange and hydroxyapatite columns using a high-pressure liquid chromatography system under denaturing conditions. The purified 40-kDa protein was not susceptible to bacterial collagenase and thrombin, but was cleaved by cyanogen bromide. The protein was stained blue with Stains-all. Among various lectins, concanavalin A and lentil lectin agglutinin bound to this protein, but peanut agglutinin, Ricinus communis agglutinin, phytohemagglutinin-E and wheatgerm lectin agglutinin did not. Lectin binding assays showed that the protein is a glycoprotein containing large amounts of mannose and/or glucose residues, but is not a fragment of proteoglycan. The amino acid composition of the protein shows a characteristically high content of acidic amino acids. Therefore, the mineral-binding 40-kDa glycoprotein is considered to be osteonectin/secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC), in terms of similarities to bovine and porcine osteonectins with regard to molecular weight and contents of glycoses and amino acids.