Effects of fibrin or its degradation products on the activation of Glu-plasminogen by streptokinase or urokinase

Identification of an inhibitor of tissue-type plasminogen activator-mediated fibrinolysis in human neutrophils. A role for defensin

An inhibitor of tissue-type plasminogen activator (tPA)-mediated and plasminogen-dependent fibrinolysis was isolated from human neutrophils. On a G-50 gel filtration column, the antifibrinolytic activity present in neutrophil homogenates comigrated with proteins of < 13 kDa. The inhibitory fraction had only a slight effect on urokinase with plasminogen- or plasmin-mediated fibrinolysis and no effect on urokinase- or plasmin-mediated cleavage of H-D-valyl-L-leucyl-L-lysine-p-nitroanilide (S-2251). The neutrophil-derived fraction inhibited tPA with plasminogen activity on S-2251 but not on H-D-isoleucyl-L-prolyl-L-arginine-p-nitroanilide (S-2288). The inhibition of tPA-mediated and plasminogen-dependent fibrinolysis or S-2251 cleavage showed a competitive pattern and could be relieved by increasing the concentration of plasminogen. The same fraction also inhibited binding of plasminogen to fibrin. Consecutive purification steps revealed that the molecular mass of the inhibitor was 1-5-kDa. Polylysine-Sepharose affinity chromatography indicated that the inhibitor is a protein of 4 kDa, migrating as one band on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Amino acid sequence analysis of this band showed the presence of two sequences, differing by one amino acid, which are identical to defensin I and II. Comparison of the sequences of plasminogen and defensin showed homology of defensin to the plasminogen kringles known to contain the lysine binding sites. The close structural similarity between defensin and plasminogen kringles and the ability of defensin to compete with plasminogen on binding to fibrin explain the ability of defensin to inhibit tPA-mediated, plasminogen-dependent fibrinolysis. These results suggest that the antifibrinolytic activity of defensin may have a biological function in preventing the spread of infection.

Kringle domains and plasmin denaturation

The rate of plasmin denaturation was in the order of Lys-plasmin greater than miniplasmin greater than microplasmin. Fibrinogen degradation products (FDP) dose dependently increased the denaturation rate of Lys-plasmin and mini-plasmin with a maximal rate constant at the FDP/plasmin ratio of about 0.5. The denaturation rate constant of microplasmin was not affected. FDP increased the rate of plasmin denaturation was in parallel with its effect on the interaction among kringle domains. Without FDP only trace amounts of plasminogen dimer could be detected by cross-linking with bis-(sulfo-succinimidyl)-suberate followed by SDS gel electrophoresis. In the low concentration of FDP significant amounts of oligomers of Glu-, mini-plasminogens, kringle 1-3 and kringle 1-5 were observed. High concentration of FDP, however, decreased plasminogen oligomer.

Activation of Val442-plasminogen (mini-plasminogen) by urokinase, streptokinase and tissue plasminogen activator

Glu-plasminogen (Glu-plg), Lys-plg and Val442-plg (mini-plg) were activated by urokinase (UK), streptokinase (SK) or tissue plasminogen activator (t-PA). Their activation rates were kinetically analyzed. UK activated Lys-plg with smaller Km and nearly identical Vmax as Glu-plg. Mini-plg was activated by UK with higher Vmax but with the same Km as Glu-plg. On the other hand, t-PA activated Glu-plg, Lys-plg and mini-plg with the same Vmax, but Km was in the order of Glu-plg greater than mini-plg greater than Lys-plg. Fibrin hardly enhanced the UK activation of mini-plg, and fibrinogen, fragment D or E did not enhance the activation of mini-plg by UK. Only D domain, but not E domain, complexed with K5 of mini-plg and SK hydrolysed S-2251 faster than a dimolecular complex of mini-plg and SK, thus a trimolecular mixture of D, SK and mini-plg having a better activator activity than SK-mini-plg complex. In the t-PA activation of mini-plg, fibrin and fibrinogen enhanced the activation, but fragment D or E was ineffective, suggesting that a molecule containing more than one domain was required for the enhanced activation of mini-plg by t-PA.

Effects of pH on the conformation and activation of plasminogen

Glu-plasminogen (plg) or Lys-plg solution was kept at pH 2.0 for various time intervals, and then readjusted to pH 7.0. The activation rate and conformational changes of such acid-treated plg were measured using the hydrolysis of S-2251, spectrofluorometry and spectropolarimetry (circular dichroism). The activation rate of acid-treated Glu-plg increased after readjustment to pH 7.0. The increase was not reversible even after keeping acid-treated Glu-plg for 24 hrs at neutral pH. The activation rate of acid-treated Lys-plg rather decreased. The fluorescence intensity at 340 nm of acid-treated plg decreased, and the intensity of fluorescence induced by the interaction of plasminogen with ANS (1-anilino-8-naphthalene sulfonate) increased after keeping plasminogen for longer than 24 hrs at pH 2.0. Circular dichroism spectra indicated that the secondary and tertiary structure of Glu-plg changed after acidification, and that only the tertiary structure of Lys-plg changed.