Single-Molecule Stretching Shows Glycosylation Sets Tension in the Hyaluronan-Aggrecan Bottlebrush.

ABSTRACT: Large bottlebrush complexes formed from the polysaccharide hyaluronan (HA) and the proteoglycan aggrecan contribute to cartilage compression resistance and are necessary for healthy joint function. A variety of mechanical forces act on these complexes in the cartilage extracellular matrix, motivating the need for a quantitative description that links their structure and mechanical response. Studies using electron microscopy have imaged the HA-aggrecan brush but require adsorption to a surface, dramatically altering the complex from its native conformation. We use magnetic tweezers force spectroscopy to measure changes in extension and mechanical response of an HA chain as aggrecan monomers bind and form a bottlebrush. This technique directly measures changes undergone by a single complex w

SUBMITTER: Innes-Gold SN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7567978 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature