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The C-type lectin-like receptors include the Nkrp1 protein family that regulates the activity of natural killer (NK) cells. Rat Nkrp1a was reported to bind monosaccharide moieties in a Ca2+-dependent manner in preference order of GalNac > GlcNAc >> Fuc >> Gal > Man. These findings established for rat Nkrp1a have been extrapolated to all additional Nkrp1 receptors and have been supported by numerous studies over the past two decades. However, since 1996 there has been controversy and another article showed lack of interactions with saccharides in 1999. Nevertheless, several high affinity saccharide ligands were synthesized in order to utilize their potential in antitumor therapy. Subsequently, protein ligands were introduced as specific binders for Nkrp1 proteins and three dimensional models of receptor/protein ligand interaction were derived from crystallographic data. Finally, for at least some members of the NK cell C-type lectin-like proteins, the “sweet story” was impaired by two reports in recent years. It has been shown that the rat Nkrp1a and CD69 do not bind saccharide ligands such as GlcNAc, GalNAc, chitotetraose and saccharide derivatives (GlcNAc-PAMAM) do not directly and specifically influence cytotoxic activity of NK cells as it was previously described.

On the basis of the highly branched ovomucoid-type undecasaccharide that had been shown previously to be an endogenous ligand for CD69 leukocyte receptor, a systematic investigation of smaller oligosaccharide mimetics was performed based on linear and branched N-acetyl-d-hexosamine homooligomers prepared synthetically using hitherto unexplored reaction schemes. The systematic structure-activity studies revealed the tetrasaccharide GlcNAcbeta1-3(GlcNAcbeta1-4)(GlcNAcbeta1-6)GlcNAc (compound 52) and its alpha-benzyl derivative 49 as the best ligand for CD69 with IC(50) as high as 10(-9) M. This compound thus approaches the affinity of the classical high-affinity neoglycoprotein ligand GlcNAc(23)BSA. Compound 68, GlcNAc tetrasaccharide 52 dimerized through a hydrophilic flexible linker, turned out to be effective in activating CD69(+) lymphocytes. It also proved efficient in enhancing natural killing in vitro, decreasing the growth of tumors in vivo, and activating the CD69(+) tumor infiltrating lymphocytes examined ex vivo. This compound is thus a candidate for carbohydrate-based immunomodulators with promising antitumor potential.

International audience; Carnivorous plants of the genus Nepenthes produce their own aspartic proteases, nepenthesins, to digest prey trapped in their pitchers. Nepenthesins differ significantly in sequence from other aspartic proteases in the animal or even plant kingdoms. This difference, which also brings more cysteine residues into the structure of these proteases, can be a cause of uniquely high temperature and pH stabilities of nepenthesins. Their detailed structure characterization, however, has not previously been possible due to low amounts of protease present in the pitcher fluid and also due to limited accessibility of Nepenthes plants. In the present study we describe a convenient way for obtaining high amounts of nepenthesin-1 from Nepenthes gracilis using heterologous production in Escherichia coli. The protein can be easily refolded in vitro and its characteristics are very close to those described for a natural enzyme isolated from the pitcher fluid. Similarly to the natural enzyme, recombinant nepenthesin-1 is sensitive to denaturing and reducing agents. It also has maximal activity around pH 2.5, shows unusual stability at high pH and its activity is not irreversibly inhibited even after prolonged incubation in the basic pH range. On the other hand, temperature stability of the recombinant enzyme is lower in comparison with the natural enzyme, which can be attributed to missing N-glycosylation in the recombinant protein.