Exploring the sulfate patterns of chondroitin sulfate/dermatan sulfate and keratan sulfate in human pancreatic cancer

• Published in: Journal of pharmaceutical and biomedical analysis Vol. 205; p. 114339
• Main Authors: Ren, Qiang, Wang, Jian, Liu, Chao, Meng, Ling-xin, Qian, Rui-kun, Gao, Hui-jie, Qin, Wei, Zhou, Cai-ju, Qiao, Sen, Wang, Hui-yun, Zhang, Li-tao, Zhang, Yun-tao
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 25-10-2021
• Subjects: Carbohydrate sulfotransferases; Chondroitin sulfate; Keratan sulfate; LC–MS/MS; Pancreatic cancer; Carbohydrate sulfotransferases; Chondroitin sulfate; LC–MS/MS; Keratan sulfate; Pancreatic cancer
• ISSN: 0731-7085; 1873-264X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jpba.2021.114339

•Determine chondroitin sulfate/dermatan sulfate and keratan sulfate in pancreatic cancer for the first time.•The contents of ΔDi-4S and ΔDi-6S are significantly high in pancreatic cancer.•CHST3, CHST12, CHST13, and CHST15 are responsible for sulfation at C4 and C6 of GalNAc residues.•The proliferation and metastasis of pancreatic cancer might be related with chondroitin sulfate and sulfotransferases.
This study was designed to explore the sulfation patterns of chondroitin sulfate (CS)/dermatan sulfate (DS), and keratan sulfate (KS) and the expression of carbohydrate sulfotransferases (CHSTs) in 26 pancreatic tumor and normal tissues. CS/DS and KS profiles were simultaneously determined. Pancreatic tumor tissues exhibited increased ΔDi-0S, ΔDi-4S, and ΔDi-6S levels, with absolute ΔDi-4S content being highest, followed by ΔDi-6S. However, as for the contents of KS-6S and KS-6S,6'S, there were no significant regular change. The expression levels of CHST1 and CHST4 were 37 and 15 times higher than those in normal tissues. PCA and OPLS-DA revealed that ΔDi-4S and ΔDi-6S levels could be reliably used to differentiate between healthy and cancerous tissues. The up-regulation of CHST3, CHST12, CHST13, and CHST15 was directly correlated with C-4 and C-6 sulfation. These data provide a foundation for future studies of the role of ΔDi-4S and ΔDi-6S in the progression of pancreatic cancer.