Isolation and characterization of three major glycoproteins from thyroid plasma membranes

Three major glycoproteins of calf thyroid plasma membranes were preferentially solubilized by chloroform/methanol extraction and recovered along with glycolipids in the aqueous phase. After removal of lipid from this extract, a fraction was obtained which accounted for about 20% of the carbohydrate of the membrane but only 2% of its peptide weight. Partial resolution of the components could be achieved by filtration on Bio-Gel A-5m, while preparative polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis resulted in the isolation in homogeneous form of approximately equal amounts of the three glycoproteins which were designated as GP-1, GP-2, and GP-3, in order of their increasing mobility. These purified glycoproteins appeared on electrophoresis as single components by periodic acid-Schiff staining as well as by distribution of radioactivity following 3H or 14C labeling. Molecular weights of 100,000, 59,000, and 20,000 were estimated for the three components on the basis of their retardation coefficients. The total carbohydrate content by weight determined for GP-1, GP-2, and GP-3 was 56, 57, and 79%, respectively. The sugar constituents were mannose, galactose, fucose, glucosamine, galactosamine, and sialic acid, which were present in the following mol per cents: GP-1, 13:32:5:24:13:12; GP-2, 20:28:3:32:5:11; GP-3, 12:36:2:34:6:10. Studies performed with various lectins (Bandeiraea simplicifolia I and I (B4), wheat germ, Ricinus communis, and soybean) on the gycoproteins, either native or after treatment with glycosidases (alpha- or beta-galactosidase, neuraminidase), indicated that sialic acid and alpha-linked galactose were in terminal positions, beta-galactosyl residues were internally located, and chains containing the sequence sialic acid-N-acetylgalactosamine were present.