2003 Volume 49 Issue 6 Pages 534-540
Chondroitin/dermatan sulfate chains consist of a repeating disaccharide unit of glucuronic acid (GlcA)/iduronic acid (IdoA) and N-acetylgalactosamine (GalNAc) with or without O-sulfation at the C-4 and C-6 position of GalNAc and at the C-2 position of IdoA. Lead and cadmium influence the synthesis of chondroitin/dermatan sulfate proteoglycan core proteins in vascular smooth muscle cells when the cell density is high and low, respectively. However, it has been unclear whether the metals influence the synthesis of chondroitin/dermatan sulfate chains. In the present study, it was shown that lead inhibits the formation of GlcAβ1-3GalNAc, GlcAβ1-3GalNAc(4S) and GlcAβ1-3GalNAc(6S) in dense cells, whereas cadmium inhibits the formation of GlcAβ1-3GalNAc(4S) and GlcAβ1-3GalNAc(6S) but increases that of IdoAβ1-3GalNAc(4S) in the sparse cells. The present data support the hypothesis that lead and cadmium may influence the composition of chondroitin/dermatan sulfate in atherosclerotic vascular wall depending on the density of vascular smooth muscle cells.
