3-galactosyl-O-glycosyl-glycoprotein beta-1, 6-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase 7, Beta-1, Beta-1,3-galactosyl-O-glycosyl-glycoprotein beta-1,6-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase 7, C20orf105, GCNT, GCNT7, GCNT7_HUMAN, glucosaminyl N-acetyl transferase family member 7.
Belonging to the glycosyltransferase 14 family, GCNT7, also known as Beta-1,3-galactosyl-O-glycosyl-glycoprotein beta-1,6-N-acetylglucosaminyltransferase 7, is a 430 amino acid glycosyltransferase that is localized to the Golgi apparatus. Other members of this family include GCNT1, GCNT2, GCNT3, GCNT4 and GCNT6. GCNT1 has been shown to play an important regulatory role in the biosynthesis of mucin-type O-glycans, which serve as ligands in cell adhesion. Specifically, GCNT1 expression in leukocytes regulates the synthesis of core 2 O-glycans that carry sialyl-Lewis x (sLex) oligosaccharides, which confer high affinity binding to Selectin proteins. Since downregulation of Selectin ligand expression has been shown to inhibit tissue infiltration, glycosyltransferase 14 family members represent potential drug targets for the treatment of inflammatory disorders and other pathologies involving Selectin proteins.
