Glycosyltransferases Involved in the Biosynthesis of Protein-Bound Oligosaccharides of the Asparagine-N-Acetyl-D-Glucosamine and Serine(Threonine)-N-Acetyl-D-Galactosamine Types

Abstract

Glycoproteins are a diverse group of biopolymers containing one or more carbohydrate chains linked covalently to a polypeptide backbone. The carbohydrate chains are classified according to the linkage between sugar and amino acid. This chapter will deal with the biosynthesis of mammalian and avian protein-bound oligosaccharides linked to polypeptide via asparagine-N-acetyl-D-glucosamine (Asn-GlcNAc, N-glycosidic) and serine(threonine)-N-acetyl-D-galactosamine [Ser(Thr)-GalNAc, O-glycosidic] linkages. Several recent reviews have considered various aspects of this topic (Schachter, 1978; Schachter and Roseman, 1980; Schachter and Williams, 1982; Beyer et al., 1981).