Chondroitin Sulfate Proteoglycans: Structure-Function Relationship with Implication in Neural Development and Brain Disorders

Figure 1

Domain structure of human VCAN, ACAN, NCAN, and BCAN. The schematic representation was performed based on information retrieved from UniProt database [34], entries P13611 (human VCAN sequence), P16112 (human ACAN sequence), O14594 (human NCAN sequence), and Q96GW7 (human BCAN sequence). The four CSPGs present the following: (i) an N-terminal G1 domain comprising an immunoglobulin-like domain (Ig domain) and proteoglycan tandem repeats (PTR) domains involved in binding hyaluronic acid, (ii) a chondroitin sulfate attachment region, (iii) a C-terminal G3 domain comprising epidermal growth factor- (EGF-) like domains, a lectin-like domain, and a complement regulatory protein- (CRP-) like domain. The G2 domain, specific only for ACAN structure, comprises two PTR domains.