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Updated: Jun 6, 2026
11:36
Glycan Node Analysis: A Bottom-up Approach to Glycomics
Published on: May 22, 2016
High-mannose glycans are elevated during breast cancer progression
Maria Lorna A de Leoz1, Lawrence J T Young, Hyun Joo An
1Department of Chemistry, University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA.
Molecular & Cellular Proteomics : MCP
|November 25, 2010
Summary
Breast cancer progression involves altered glycosylation. This study identified specific N-linked glycans, including high-mannose Man(9), that change in both mouse models and human patients, indicating potential biomarkers for early cancer detection.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Glycobiology
- Cancer Research
Background:
- Glycosylation alterations are hallmarks of cancer, but monitoring these changes during breast cancer progression in humans is challenging.
- The mouse mammary tumor virus-polyoma middle T antigen model offers a valuable platform for studying early glycosylation shifts in breast cancer.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate N-linked glycan variations during breast cancer progression using a mouse model.
- To identify potential glycan biomarkers for early breast cancer detection by comparing mouse and human serum samples.
Main Methods:
- Profiling of N-glycans from total serum glycoproteins in a mouse breast tumor model at different stages (onset, progression, removal).
- Utilized matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization Fourier transform-ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometry for glycan analysis.
- Analyzed N-glycans from human breast cancer patient and control serum samples.
Main Results:
- Four N-linked glycans (m/z 1339.480, 1485.530, 1809.639, 1905.630) showed intensity changes in the cancer group of mice.
- Alterations in low-abundant high-mannose glycans (m/z 1419.475, 1581.528, 1743.581, 1905.634) were observed in human breast cancer patients.
- A significant finding was the elevated presence of high-mannose glycan Man(9) (m/z 1905.630) in both mouse and human sera from cancer-bearing subjects.
Conclusions:
- Elevated Man(9) levels in serum may indicate an incompletion of the glycosylation process during breast cancer.
- These findings suggest that specific N-glycans, particularly Man(9), could serve as potential biomarkers for early breast cancer detection.
- The study highlights the utility of the mouse mammary tumor virus-polyoma middle T antigen model for glycan biomarker discovery in breast cancer research.
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