Molecular Determinants of Sequence-Dependent N-glycosylation by the Human Oligosaccharyltransferase

Abstract

Protein N-glycosylation is catalysed by the oligosaccharyltransferase (OST) complex, yet how local sequon composition controls substrate selection by human OST remains poorly understood. Here we combine atomistic molecular dynamics, alchemical free-energy calculations, in cellulo glycosylation assays and human glycoproteome analysis to define the molecular basis of sequence-dependent N-glycosylation. We built, to our knowledge, the first atomistic model of human OST with both the lipid-linked oligosaccharide donor and an acceptor peptide simultaneously accommodated in a catalytically competent complex. Simulations show that conserved STT3 motifs stabilize the acceptor Asn and explain how substitutions at positions 0, +1 and +2 alter binding and productive geometry. Cellular assays in HEK 293T cells validate the predicted loss of glycosylation for N0Q sequon, +1 Pro and the +2 hierarchy Thr > Ser >> Cys. Analysis of 14,800 human glycosites confirms these rules at proteome scale.