The effect of the carboxy-terminal lysine of urokinase on the catalysis of plasminogen activation

Expression and characterization of recombinant human micro-plasminogen

Micro-plasminogen (microPlg) gene amplified from human liver cells by reverse transcription PCR was inserted into expression vector pET-28a (pET-28a/microPlg) and transformed into E. coli strain BL21(DE3). Recombinant human micro-plasminogen (rh-microPlg) was over-expressed as inclusion bodies when induced with IPTG. After renaturation and purification, 16 mg rh-microPlg/l was obtained with a homogeneity of 95% (w/w). Pro-urokinase (proUK)-induced rh-microPlg activation was significantly faster than when Glu-plasminogen was the substrate. The catalytic efficiency of urokinase (UK) activation of rh-microPlg was twice that of Glu-plasminogen. While recombinant human micro-plasmin (rh-microPlm) and Lys-plasmin had a similar amidolytic activity against a small substrate, D-valyl-L-leucyllysine-p-nitroaniline dihydrochloride, Lys-plasmin activated proUK with a catalytic efficiency about fourfold greater than did rh-microPlm. These results suggested that the kringle 1-5 domain of plasminogen and plasmin may modify both UK activation of plasminogen and plasmin activation of proUK, respectively.

Tumor growth and metastasis are not affected in thrombin-activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor-deficient mice

Many studies have indicated that the plasminogen activation system may have a prominent role in cancer. Activation of the zymogen plasminogen into the serine protease plasmin by plasminogen activator is mediated by carboxyterminal basic amino acids in fibrin, including lysines and arginines. Thrombin-activatable fibrinolysis inhibitor (TAFI) is a circulating carboxypeptidase B-type proenzyme that, after activation, removes carboxyterminal lysine or arginine residues in fibrin, resulting in decreased plasminogen activation and attenuated fibrinolysis. To determine directly whether TAFI is involved in primary tumor growth and metastasis formation, we examined the effects of TAFI deficiency on subcutaneous growth and experimentally or spontaneously induced pulmonary metastasis formation of different tumor cell types in mice. In all tumor models TAFI deficiency did not affect the formation and growth of primary and metastasized tumors.

The blockage of the high-affinity lysine binding sites of plasminogen by EACA significantly inhibits prourokinase-induced plasminogen activation

Prourokinase-induced plasminogen activation is complex and involves three distinct reactions: (1) plasminogen activation by the intrinsic activity of prourokinase; (2) prourokinase activation by plasmin; (3) plasminogen activation by urokinase. To further understand some of the mechanisms involved, the effects of epsilon-aminocaproic acid (EACA), a lysine analogue, on these reactions were studied. At a low range of concentrations (10-50 microM), EACA significantly inhibited prourokinase-induced (Glu-/Lys-) plasminogen activation, prourokinase activation by Lys-plasmin, and (Glu-/Lys-) plasminogen activation by urokinase. However, no inhibition of plasminogen activation by Ala158-prourokinase (a plasmin-resistant mutant) occurred. Therefore, the overall inhibition of EACA on prourokinase-induced plasminogen activation was mainly due to inhibition of reactions 2 and 3, by blocking the high-affinity lysine binding interaction between plasmin and prourokinase, as well as between plasminogen and urokinase. These findings were consistent with kinetic studies which suggested that binding of kringle 1-4 of plasmin to the N-terminal region of prourokinase significantly promotes prourokinase activation, and that binding of kringle 1-4 of plasminogen to the C-terminal lysine158 of urokinase significantly promotes plasminogen activation. In conclusion, EACA was found to inhibit, rather than promote, prourokinase-induced plasminogen activation due to its blocking of the high-affinity lysine binding sites on plasmin(ogen).

Amino-terminal fragment of urokinase-type plasminogen activator inhibits its plasminogen activation

The amino terminal fragment (ATF, Ser(1)-Lys(135)) of urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) containing an epidermal growth factor-like (EGF) and kringle domain is critically involved in some important functions of uPA, such as receptor binding and chemotactic activity. In this report, the effect of ATF on single-chain uPA (sc-uPA) induced plasminogen activation was investigated. It was shown that sc-uPA-induced activation of Glu-plasminogen or Lys-plasminogen was significantly inhibited in the presence of ATF. In addition, sc-uPA activation to two-chain uPA (tc-uPA) by Lys-plasmin and plasminogen activation to plasmin by tc-uPA were both found to be inhibited by ATF. The inhibition of these activations was significantly attenuated but not diminished when ATF was pretreated with immobilized carboxypeptidase B (CPB), indicating that the C-terminal Lys(135) as well as internal Lys/Arg residue binding was involved in the mechanism. Kinetic analysis showed that sc-uPA activation by Lys-plasmin competitively inhibited by ATF and CPB pretreated ATF (CPB-ATF) with an inhibitory constant (K(i)) of 3.8+/-0.31 and 12.4 +/- 1.8 microM, respectively. In contrast to sc-uPA-induced Glu- or Lys-plasminogen activation, sc-uPA-induced mini-plasminogen activation, sc-uPA activation by mini-plasmin and mini-plasminogen activation by tc-uPA were not affected by ATF. These findings suggested that the inhibitory effects of ATF on sc-uPA activation by Lys-plasmin and Glu- or Lys-plasminogen activation by tc-uPA were related to the binding of ATF (by its C-terminal Lys(135) and internal Lys/Arg residue) with the kringle 1-4 of plasmin and plasminogen, respectively.

A study of the mechanism of inhibition of fibrinolysis by activated thrombin-activable fibrinolysis inhibitor

TAFI (thrombin-activable fibrinolysis inhibitor) is a recently described plasma zymogen that, when exposed to the thrombin-thrombomodulin complex, is converted by proteolysis at Arg92 to a basic carboxypeptidase that inhibits fibrinolysis (TAFIa). The studies described here were undertaken to elucidate the molecular basis for the inhibition of fibrinolysis. When TAFIa is included in a clot undergoing fibrinolysis induced by tissue plasminogen activator and plasminogen, the time to achieve lysis is prolonged, and free arginine and lysine are released over time. In addition, TAFIa prevents a 2.5-fold increase in the rate constant for plasminogen activation which occurs when fibrin is modified by plasmin in the early course of fibrin degradation. The effect is specific for the Glu- form of plasminogen. TAFIa prevents or at least attenuates positive feedback expressed through Lys-plasminogen formation during the process of fibrinolysis initiated by tissue plasminogen activator and plasminogen. TAFIa also inhibits plasmin activity in a clot and prolongs fibrinolysis initiated with plasmin. We conclude that TAFIa suppresses fibrinolysis by removing COOH-terminal lysine and arginine residues from fibrin, thereby reducing its cofactor functions in both plasminogen activation and the positive feedback conversion of Glu-plasminogen to Lys-plasminogen. At relatively elevated concentrations, it also directly inhibits plasmin.

Production and characterization of recombinant human plasminogen(S741C-fluorescein). A novel approach to study zymogen activation without generation of active protease

A variant of recombinant plasminogen with the plasmin active site serine (S741) replaced by cysteine was produced and labeled with fluorescein at this residue to provide the derivative Plg(S741C-fluorescein). Studies of cleavage, conformation, and fibrin-binding properties of the derivative showed it to be a good model substrate to study plasminogen activation. Both in solution and in a fully polymerized fibrin clot, cleavage of the single chain zymogen to the two-chain "plasmin" molecule was accompanied by a 50% quench of fluorescence intensity. This change allows facile, continuous monitoring of the kinetics of cleavage. Measurements of cleavage by single chain t-PA within intact, fully polymerized 3 microM fibrin yielded apparent kcat and Km values of (0.08 s-1, 0.52 microM) and (0.092 s-1, 0.098 microM) for [Glu1]- and [Lys78]Plg(S741C-fluorescein), respectively. These values are similar to those obtained by others with plasma plasminogen. The approach used here might generally be useful in simplifying the analysis of zymogen activation kinetics in cases where the product (protease) has a great influence on its own formation via positive or negative feedback loops.

Activated human plasma carboxypeptidase B is retained in the blood by binding to alpha2-macroglobulin and pregnancy zone protein

A 66-kDa glycosylated carboxypeptidase, plasma pro-carboxypeptidase B (pro-plasma CPB), has recently been identified in human blood (Eaton, D. L., Malloy, B. E., Tsai, S. P., Henzel, W., and Drayna, D. (1991) J. Biol. Chem. 266, 21833-21838). The pro-enzyme binds to plasminogen and the active enzyme is specific for COOH-terminal Lys or Arg residues. These properties implicate a role in the fibrinolytic or coagulation system. However, we show that the molecular mass of the active plasma CPB is approximately 36 kDa, which is below the glomerular filtration limit. Since activated plasma CPB no longer binds plasminogen, the active enzyme may not be retained in the circulation. To investigate this, we performed plasma elimination studies in mice which showed that 125I-plasma CPB remains in the circulation despite its small size. Native polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of blood samples removed from the mice revealed that plasma CPB migrated as a high molecular weight band. Similar bands were observed in vitro when 125I-plasma CPB was added to plasma from humans and other species. The plasma CPB-binding proteins were purified from human plasma and identified as alpha2-macroglobulin (alpha2M) and pregnancy zone protein. Only the active enzyme bound to the two alpha-macroglobulins, and the interaction was specific for alpha2M in its native conformation, but not its receptor recognized forms. The complex between human alpha2M and plasma CPB dissociated during SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and transverse urea gel electrophoresis suggesting that the interaction was noncovalent and depended on the tertiary structure of the native alpha2M molecule. The catalytic activity of plasma CPB was not significantly affected by its binding to alpha2M. The specific binding of plasma CPB to alpha-macroglobulins suggest that these proteins may function as a "shuttle" in vivo to modulate the clearance of plasma CPB from the circulatory system.