Enhancement of the activities of glycosyltransferases involved in the biosynthesis of mucin-type sugar chains in autoimmune MRL lpr/lpr mouse T cells.

Lymph node (LN) T cells from autoimmune MRL/MpJ-lpr/lpr (lpr) mice and control MRL/MpJ-+/+ (+/+) mice were compared as to their cell surface lectin-binding sites and glycosyltransferase activities. T cells from enlarged LN of lpr mice expressed a higher amount of binding sites for lectins reactive to mucin-type sugar chains than normal +/+ mouse T cells. Correspondingly, glycosyltransferase activities involved in the biosynthesis of mucin-type sugar chains were higher in lpr mouse T cells than in +/+ T cells. The activities of UDP-N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNAc):polypeptide GalNAc transferase and UDP-galactose (Gal):asialo bovine submaxillary mucin (BSM) Gal transferase were found to be elevated. The activity of UDP-Gal:asialo-agalacto transferrin Gal transferase, which is involved in the biosynthesis of complex type sugar chains, was also increased in lpr mice but to a smaller extent than the mucin-type Gal transferase activities. An abnormality in sialyltransferase activity was also found in lpr T cells.