Proteoglycans synthesized by smooth muscle cells derived from monkey (Macaca nemestrina) aorta

Smooth muscle cells derived from monkey aorta were cultured in medium with [35S]sulfate and [3H]glucosamine as labeling precursors. Proteoglycans in the medium and in 4 M guanidine HCl extracts of the cell layer were purified by DEAE-Sephacel and molecular sieve chromatography. Both preparations contained a predominant, large chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan (Kav = 0.30 on Sepharose CL-2B) with glycosaminoglycan chains of Mr approximately 43,000 average containing a ratio of 6-sulfate to 4-sulfate of approximately 2. Approximately 7 and 27% of the 3H label in this proteoglycan were present in N-linked and O-linked oligosaccharides, respectively. Reaggregation experiments indicated that a large proportion of these proteoglycans can form link protein-stabilized aggregates. The medium fraction also contained a smaller dermatan sulfate proteoglycan (Kav = 0.67 on Sepharose CL-2B) with glycosaminoglycan chains of Mr approximately 43,000 containing a ratio of 6-sulfate to 4-sulfate of about 0.5. This proteoglycan contained approximately the same percentage of N-linked oligosaccharides as the chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan, but few or no O-linked oligosaccharides. A smaller dermatan sulfate proteoglycan with a single chain was present only in the cell layer. Additionally, small amounts of heparan sulfate proteoglycans were synthesized by the cells.