N-glycome inheritance from cells to extracellular vesicles in B16 melanomas

We investigated the correlation between metastatic behaviors of tumor cells and asparagine-linked glycosylation (N-glycosylation) of tumor-derived extracellular vesicles (EVs). Three mouse melanoma B16 variants with distinct metastatic potentials show similar gene expression levels and enzymatic activities of glycosyltransferases involved in N-glycosylation. All melanoma variants and EVs have nearly identical profiles of de-sialylated N-glycans. The major de-sialylated N-glycan structures of cells and EVs are core-fucosylated, tetra-antennary N-glycans with β1,6-N-acetylglucosamine branches. A few N-glycans are extended by N-acetyllactosamine repeats. Sialylation of these N-glycans may generate cell-type-specific N-glycomes on EVs. Taken together, melanoma-derived EVs show high expression of tumor-associated N-glycans, and the core structure profile is inherited during multiple selection cycles of B16 melanomas and from tumor cells to EVs.