Brain-specific glycosylation enzyme GnT-IX maintains levels of protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor PTPRZ, thereby mediating glioma growth PTPRZ glycosylation regulates glioma growth

Gliomas are the most prevalent primary tumor of the CNS. Despite advances in imaging technologies, neurosurgical techniques, and radiotherapy, a cure for high-grade glioma remains elusive. Several groups have reported that protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor Z (PTPRZ) is highly expressed in glioblastoma, and that targeting PTPRZ attenuates tumor growth in mice. PTPRZ is modified with diverse glycan, including the PTPRZ-unique human natural killer-1 (HNK-1) capped O-Man core M2 glycans. However, the regulation and function of these unique glycans are unclear. Using CRISPR genome-editing technology we first demonstrated that disruption of the PTPRZ gene in human glioma LN-229 cells resulted in profoundly reduced tumor growth in xenografted mice, confirming the potential of PTPRZ as a therapeutic target for glioma. Furthermore, multiple glycan analyses revealed that PTPRZ derived from glioma patients and from xenografted glioma expressed abundant levels of HNK-1 capped O-Man glycans via extrinsic signals. Finally, since deficiency of O-Man core M2 branching enzyme N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase IX (GnT-IX) was reported to reduce PTPRZ protein levels, we disrupted the GnT-IX gene in LN-229 cells and found a significant reduction of glioma growth both in vitro and in the xenograft model. These results suggest that the PTPR glycosylation enzyme GnT-IX may represent a promising therapeutic target for glioma.