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Non-anticoagulant biological functions of heparin-based drugs have drawn increasing attention. However, the exploration into the non-anticoagulant activities of various low molecular weight heparins was associated with bleeding risks in clinical practice and often led to controversial conclusions due to the structural differences. In this study, we aimed to establish a process to produce a library of heparin derivatives with structural diversity and reduced/abolished anticoagulant activity through the combination of chemical modifications and enzymatic cleavage of heparins. The depolymerization characteristics of various selectively modified heparin derivatives by three heparinases were comprehensively analyzed. The order of periodate treatment and heparinase-I depolymerization was proved to significantly change the structural characteristics of the oligosaccharide products. Finally, among several heparin derivatives that screened in the bleomycin-induced cell apoptosis model, the low molecular weight partially 6-O-/N-desulfated heparins showed the strongest anti-apoptotic activities. This study provided a useful approach for future development of novel heparin-derivative medications., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Heparan sulfate (HS) and heparin are sulfated polysaccharides exhibiting diverse physiological functions. HS 6-O-sulfotransferase (6-OST) is a HS biosynthetic enzyme that transfers a sulfo group to the 6-OH position of glucosamine to synthesize HS with desired biological activities. Chemoenzymatic synthesis is a widely adopted method to obtain HS oligosaccharides to support biological studies. However, this method is unable to synthesize all possible structures due to the specificity of natural enzymes. Here, we report the use of an engineered 6-OST to achieve fine control of the 6-O-sulfation. Unlike wild type enzyme, the engineered 6-OST only sulfates the non-reducing end glucosamine residue. Utilizing the engineered enzyme and wild type enzyme, we successfully completed the synthesis of five hexasaccharides and one octasaccharide differing in 6-O-sulfation patterns. We also identified a hexasaccharide construct as a new anticoagulant drug candidate. Our results demonstrate the feasibility of using an engineered HS biosynthetic enzyme to prepare HS-based therapeutics.

Heparin is a polysaccharide anticoagulant drug isolated from animal tissues. There have been concerns on the safety and security of the heparin supply chain since 2007-8 when a contamination crisis led to its disruption. The current study applies a suite of modern analytical techniques to porcine, bovine and ovine intestinal mucosal heparins. These techniques include structural analysis by nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometry, disaccharide compositional analysis, bottom-up analysis of tetrasaccharides corresponding to heparin's antithrombin III binding site. Chemometric analysis was then applied to understand how these structural differences to predict the animal/tissue source of heparin and to help detect blending of heparins from various sources., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Heparin, a highly sulfated glycosaminoglycan, has been used as a clinical anticoagulant over 80 years. However, heparin-induced thrombocytopenia and thrombosis (HITT) is a serious side effect of heparin therapy, resulting in relatively high risk of amputation and even death. HITT is caused by forming of complexes between heparin and platelet factor 4 (PF4). Enoxaparin, one of the most commonly used low molecular weight heparin (LMWH), were developed in 1980's. The lower molecular weight of enoxaparin reduces the risk of HITT by binding to less PF4. To detect the binding capacity between enoxaparin and PF4 could be an effect way to control this risk before it goes to patients. In this work, a size exclusion chromatography (SEC) method was developed to analyze the patterns of complexes formed between PF4 and enoxaparin. The chromatographic condition was optimized to separate PF4, enoxaparin, ultra-large complexes and small complexes. The linearity and stability of this method were confirmed. The impacts of PF4/enoxaparin mixture ratios and incubation time on the forming complexes were investigated. Four enoxaparin samples were analyzed with this method to verify its practicability. It is a robust, accurate and practicable method, and provides an easy way to monitor the capacity of enoxaparin forming complexes with PF4, suggesting the HITT related quality of enoxaparin., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Fucoidans are complex sulfated polysaccharides extracted from brown algae. Depending on the concentration, they have been shown to stimulate and inhibit blood coagulation in vitro. Promotion of coagulation is mediated by blocking tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI). We screened fucoidan extracts from four brown algae species in vitro with respect to their potential to improve coagulation in bleeding disorders. The fucoidans' pro- and anticoagulant activities were assessed by global hemostatic and standard clotting assays. Results showed that fucoidans improved coagulation parameters. Some fucoidans also activated the contact pathway of coagulation, an undesired property reported for sulfated glycosaminoglycans. Chemical evaluation of fucoidans' complex and variable structure included molecular weight (Mw), polydispersity (polyD), structural heterogeneity, and organic and inorganic impurities. Herewith, we describe a screening strategy that facilitates the identification of crude fucoidan extracts with desired biological and structural properties for improvement of compromised coagulation like in hemophilia., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

RATIONALE: Heparin and low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) are widely used as clinical anticoagulants. The determination of their composition and structural heterogeneity still challenges analysts. METHODS: Disaccharide compositional analysis, utilizing heparinase-catalyzed depolymerization, is one of the most important ways to evaluate the sequence, structural composition and quality of heparin and LMWH. Hydrophilic interaction chromatography coupled with quadruple time-of-flight mass spectrometry (HILIC/QTOFMS) has been developed to analyze the resulting digestion products. RESULTS: HILIC shows good resolution and excellent MS compatibility. Digestion products of heparin and LMWHs afforded up to 16 compounds that were separated using HILIC and analyzed semi-quantitatively. These included eight common disaccharides, two disaccharides derived from chain termini, three 3-O-sulfo-group-containing tetrasaccharides, along with three linkage region tetrasaccharides and their derivatives. Structures of these digestion products were confirmed by mass spectral analysis. The disaccharide compositions of a heparin, two batches of the LMWH, enoxaparin, and two batches of the LMWH, nadroparin, were compared. In addition to identifying disaccharides, 3-O-sulfo-group-containing tetrasaccharides, linkage region tetrasaccharides were observed having slightly different compositions and contents in these heparin products suggesting that they had been prepared using different starting materials or production processes. CONCLUSIONS: Thus, compositional analysis using HILIC/QTOFMS offers a unique insight into different heparin products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Two fractions (A and C) of GAGs from porcine jejunum and duodenum were purified. • A is a heparan sulfate, and C is composed of β- d -GlcA-(1 → 4) and β- d -GalNAc-(1 → 3). • They possessed controllable anti-coagulant activity in vitro. • Additional sulfate modification enhanced the effect. To make full use of the porcine sources and develop better choice of novel GAGs as anti-coagulants, two fractions of GAGs from the porcine jejunum (A) and duodenum (C) have been separated & purified. The products were further sulfated to give B and D in order to test the influence of sulfate pattern on the bioactivity. The results showed that the relative molecular weight range of A was 3000–50,000 (Mw, g/mol), whereas C had an average molecular weight of 75,885 (Mw, g/mol). A was identified as a novel heparan sulfate through enzymatic hydrolysis analysis. C was a chondroitin like polysaccharide mainly composed of β - d -GlcA-(1 → 4) and β - d -GalNAc-(1 → 3). A possessed controllable anti-coagulant activity (7 IU/mg) in vitro. The activity of D almost achieved the same magnitude of A. This study demonstrated the anticoagulant potential of the polysaccharides, providing solid foundation for development of anti-coagulants from porcine intestine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]