Lectin-binding assays for the isoforms of human erythropoietin: comparison of urinary and four recombinant erythropoietins.

Assays have been developed for the isoforms of erythropoietin (EPO) based on their binding to eight different lectins. These assays were used to compare the isoform compositions of two preparations of human urinary EPO (uEPO) and four preparations of recombinant DNA-derived human EPO (rEPO), which had been shown to differ in their biological and immunological properties and in their isoform composition as judged by isoelectric focusing and electrophoresis. Agarose-bound Ricinus communis agglutinin I (RCA), Erythrina cristagalli agglutinin (ECA), Maackia amurensis leukoagglutinin (MAL), Sambucus nigra agglutinin (SNA), Lycopersicon esculentum agglutinin (LEA), concanavalin A (Con A), Phaseolus vulgaris agglutinin-L4 (L-PHA) and Agaricus bisporus agglutinin (ABA) were used to bind EPO isoforms possessing: N-glycans containing non-sialylated outer Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc (RCA and ECA), NeuAc alpha 2-3Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc (MAL), NeuAc alpha 2-6Gal (SNA), or repeating Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc sequences (LEA); biantennary N-glycans (Con A); tetraantennary and 2,6-branched triantennary N-glycans (L-PHA); and O-glycans containing NeuAc alpha 2-6GalNAc (SNA) and Gal beta 1-3GalNAc (ABA). Free EPO was measured by mouse spleen cell bioassay or immunoassay. Estimates from most lectin-binding assays were reproducible between assays and batches of lectin-agarose, although batches of MAL- and ABA-agarose, and to a lesser extent LEA-agarose, differed in their EPO-binding. Lectin-binding assays showed differences between the isoform compositions of all EPOs, including the two Chinese hamster ovary cell-derived rEPOs, with RCA- and ECA-binding assays being the most discriminating. Lectin-binding estimates provided evidence that uEPO differs from these rEPOs in its lower content of isoforms with biantennary N-glycans and higher content of those with multiantennary N-glycans, and in its lower content of isoforms with N-glycans possessing repeating Gal beta 1-4GlcNAc sequences and of those with O-glycans containing Gal beta 1-3GalNAc. Lectin-binding estimates also indicated that, contrary to some reports, uEPO possesses Gal beta 1-3GalNAc-containing O-glycans but not NeuAc alpha 2-6GalNAc-containing O-glycans or NeuAc alpha 2-6Gal-containing N-glycans. Most groups of lectin-bound EPO isoforms did not differ in their relative bioactivities and immunoreactivities. However, estimates for ABA-bound EPO isoforms suggested that O-glycans might influence the bioactivity of EPO differently to its immunoreactivity. Furthermore, the bioactivities of some ECA-bound EPO isoforms were higher, and those of some of the MAL-bound EPO isoforms lower, than their immunoreactivities, consistent with the reported enhancement of EPO in vitro bioactivity by desialylation.