Chunk #20 — DISCUSSION — Variations in N-glycan types and contents in the two MOPR variants may play a role in region-specific effects of A112G on MOPR protein expression
contents in the MOPR in different brain regions. Importantly, the wild-type MOPR has been shown to be differentially modified by N-linked glycans in the CPu and thalamus of the rat and mouse, suggesting that N-glycosylation of MOPR is brain region-specific (Huang et al., 2008, 2012). Indeed, Matsuhashi et al. (2003) reported region-specific expression of glycotransferases in adult mouse brain. Thus, we hypothesize that the brain area-specific impact of A112G on MOPR expression may be due to differences in glycan content changes of the MOPR induced by this substitution across brain regions (Huang et al., 2008). This hypothesis remains to be investigated.
