RESEARCH ARTICLE N-glycosylation in the protease domain of trypsin-like serine proteases mediates calnexin-assisted protein folding Hao Wang1,2, Shuo Li1, Juejin Wang1†, Shenghan Chen1‡, Xue-Long Sun1,2,3,4, Qingyu Wu1,2,5* 1Molecular Cardiology, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, United States; 2Department of Chemistry, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, United States; 3Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, United States; 4Center for Gene Regulation of Health and Disease, Cleveland State University, Cleveland, United States; 5Cyrus Tang Hematology Center, State Key Laboratory of Radiation Medicine and Prevention, Soochow University, Suzhou, China Abstract Trypsin-like serine proteases are essential in physiological processes. Studies have shown that N-glycans are important for serine protease expression and secretion, but the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. Here, we report a common mechanism of N-glycosylation in the protease domains of corin, enteropeptidase and prothrombin in calnexin- mediated glycoprotein folding and extracellular expression. This mechanism, which is independent *For correspondence: of calreticulin and operates in a domain-autonomous manner, involves two steps: direct calnexin
[email protected] binding to target proteins and subsequent calnexin binding to monoglucosylated N-glycans. Elimination of N-glycosylation sites in the protease domains of corin, enteropeptidase and Present address: †Department prothrombin inhibits corin and enteropeptidase cell surface expression and prothrombin secretion of Physiology, Nanjing Medical in transfected HEK293 cells. Similarly, knocking down calnexin expression in cultured University, Nanjing, China; ‡Human Aging Research cardiomyocytes and hepatocytes reduced corin cell surface expression and prothrombin secretion, Institute, School of Life Sciences, respectively. Our results suggest that this may be a general mechanism in the trypsin-like serine Nanchang University, Nanchang, proteases with N-glycosylation sites in their protease domains.