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Query: UNIPROT:P06889 (Mol)
 630,302 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The structure of a recombinant hirudin (variant 2, Lys47) human alpha-thrombin complex has been refined using restrained least-squares methods to a crystallographic R-factor of 0.173. The hirudin structure consists of an N-terminal domain folded into a globular unit and a long 17-peptide C-terminal in an extended chain conformation. The N-terminal domain binds at the active-site of thrombin where Ile1' to Tyr3' penetrates to the catalytic triad. The alpha-amino group of Ile1' of hirudin makes a hydrogen bond with OG of Ser195 of thrombin, the side-chains of Ile1' and Tyr3' occupy the apolar site, Thr2' is at the entrance to, but does not enter, the S1 specificity site and Ile1' to Tyr3' form a parallel beta-strand with Ser214 to Gly219. The latter interaction is antiparallel in all other serine proteinase-protein inhibitor complexes. The extended C-terminal segment of hirudin, which is abundant in acidic residues, makes many electrostatic interactions with the fibrinogen binding exosite while the last five residues are in a 3(10) helical turn residing in a hydrophobic patch on the thrombin surface. The precision of the complementarity displayed by these two molecules produces numerous interactions, which although independently generally weak, together are responsible for the high degree of affinity and specificity. Although hirudin-thrombin and D-Phe-Pro-Arg-chloromethyl ketone-thrombin differ in conformation in the autolysis loop (Lys145 to Gly150), this is most likely due to different crystal packing interactions and changes in circular dichroism between the two are probably due to the inherent flexibility of the loop. An RGD sequence, which is generally known to be involved in cell surface receptor interactions, occurs in thrombin and is associated with a long solvent channel filled with water molecules leading to the surface from the end of the S1 site. However, the RGD triplet does not appear to be able to interact in concert in a surface binding mode.
J Mol Biol 1991 Sep 20
PMID:Refined structure of the hirudin-thrombin complex. 192 Apr 34

Estrogen causes the cytoplasmic destabilization of albumin and gamma-fibrinogen mRNA in Xenopus laevis liver. The purpose of the present study was to determine whether mRNA destabilization is a generalized phenomenon in response to estrogen, or whether this process is restricted to a particular class of mRNAs. To address this, we have expanded our bank of serum protein-coding cDNA clones to include transferrin, the second protein of inter-alpha-trypsin inhibitor and clone 12B, for which there is no mammalian homolog. Together with albumin and gamma-fibrinogen, these represent more than 85% of the mRNAs encoding liver secreted proteins. Estrogen administration to male Xenopus or to liver explant cultures causes the generalized disappearance of all of these mRNAs. In contrast, estrogen has no effect on actin, ferritin, or poly(A)-binding protein mRNA, all of which encode intracellular proteins. We have previously demonstrated that albumin mRNA is degraded in both messenger ribonucleoprotein and polysome fractions. Sucrose gradient analysis demonstrates the same pattern for degradation of all other serum protein-coding mRNAs. Estrogen has no effect on the amounts or gradient distribution of actin, ferritin, or poly(A)-binding protein mRNA. We conclude that regulated destabilization of mRNAs encoding secreted proteins is a generalized phenomenon in response to estrogen stimulation of Xenopus liver.
Mol Endocrinol 1991 Apr
PMID:Coordinate estrogen-regulated instability of serum protein-coding messenger RNAs in Xenopus laevis. 192 78

Fibrinogen synthesis is specifically induced by a synthetic glucocorticoid, dexamethasone, in primary liver parenchymal cell cultures of the frog Xenopus laevis. Here we demonstrate that this increase in the level of fibrinogen protein production is accompanied by an induction in the three mRNAs coding for the fibrinogen subunits, designated A alpha, B beta, and gamma. The stimulation of fibrinogen mRNA levels appears to be mediated by the glucocorticoid receptor, because 1) the dose-response relationship parallels the reported affinity of dexamethasone for the Xenopus glucocorticoid receptor; and 2) the induction is blocked by RU 486, a potent antiglucocorticoid. All three subunit mRNA levels are induced coordinately by the hormone. The response is characterized by a detectable increase as early as 2-4 h after dexamethasone addition, continuing to a final 10- to 30-fold increase over basal levels by 60 h. The induction is specific for the fibrinogen mRNAs; total cellular RNA content and the levels of other mRNAs are unaffected by the hormone. Dexamethasone-mediated stimulation of A alpha and B beta mRNA production occurs in the absence of protein synthesis, whereas increased production of gamma mRNA is completely blocked under the same conditions. Thus, the A alpha and B beta genes are probably regulated at least in part by direct transcriptional activation by glucocorticoid-receptor complexes. Induction of the gamma gene is dependent on newly synthesized or labile proteins, which could be required for either transcription or posttranscriptional processes. These data suggest that different proteins are involved in regulation of the three fibrinogen genes.
Mol Endocrinol 1991 Apr
PMID:Coordinate regulation of fibrinogen subunit messenger RNA levels by glucocorticoids in primary cultures of Xenopus liver parenchymal cells. 192 91

Electron microscope images of frozen-hydrated crystals of a proteolytically modified fibrinogen show excellent preservation of the structure. An electron density map of the key centric projection of the crystal at 18 A resolution has been obtained by combining the phases derived from cryo-electron microscopy with X-ray amplitudes. Simulation methods developed in earlier studies have been used to interpret the map. In contrast to the earlier images, the map allows us to visualize the coiled-coil region of the molecule and possible substructure in the beta domains. The map also shows that there is a marked difference in density in the two regions corresponding to the molecular ends where the gamma domains interact. A possible interpretation of this finding is provided by assuming substructure in the gamma domains and the breaking of molecular symmetry where these domains interact. Some additional constraints useful for the determination of the three-dimensional structure were obtained from cryo-electron micrographs of a perpendicular view at 25 A resolution. Implications of this working model for the molecular length and contacts in the filaments in both the crystal and fibrin are described. The data used here will be valuable as a starting point for obtaining the three-dimensional structure.
J Mol Biol 1991 Nov 05
PMID:Fibrinogen structure in projection at 18 A resolution. Electron density by co-ordinated cryo-electron microscopy and X-ray crystallography. 194 70

Fibrinogen, the principal blood-clotting protein, is made up of three different subunits synthesized in the liver. In vitro administration of glucocorticoids to liver cells from the frog Xenopus laevis causes a dramatic increase in fibrinogen synthesis. Investigations of molecular mechanisms underlying this hormonal stimulation at the mRNA level require cDNA clones complementary to the mRNAs coding for the three fibrinogen subunits, called A alpha, B beta, and gamma. We describe here the isolation and characterization of cDNA clones for the B beta subunit of Xenopus fibrinogen. cDNA libraries in both plasmid (pBR322) and phage (lambda gt10) cloning vectors were constructed from frog liver mRNA and screened with a rat B beta cDNA. Clones thus isolated hybridized to two Xenopus liver mRNAs 2500 and 1800 bases long, the previously-determined sizes for B beta mRNAs. The identity of the plasmid clone B beta-27 was confirmed by hybridization-selection of complementary mRNA which translated in vitro into the B beta polypeptide, as determined by size and susceptibility to thrombin cleavage. lambda/B beta 10, a clone representing nearly all of the 2500-base B beta mRNA, was isolated from the phage cDNA library. The 3'-end of this clone includes a polyadenylation signal about 20 residues upstream of a stretch of 34 adenosine residues, which probably represents the 3'-poly(A) tail of the messenger RNA. lambda/B beta 10 lacks only 20 nucleotides of full-length B beta mRNA at the 5'-end and there is one major start site of transcription. The 2500-base B beta mRNA has a 700-base extension at the 3'-end that is not present in the 1800-base mRNA. The Xenopus laevis genome contains two or three genes for the B beta fibrinogen subunit. Using the cDNA clone as a probe, B beta mRNA was shown to be induced at least 20-fold by glucocorticoid treatment of purified parenchymal cells of Xenopus liver maintained in primary culture.
Mol Cell Endocrinol 1991 Feb
PMID:Molecular cloning of cDNA for the B beta subunit of Xenopus fibrinogen, the product of a coordinately-regulated gene family. 205 Feb 71

Treatment of monocytes or K562 cells with proteolytic enzymes like pronase or trypsin, increases both the affinity of the type II Fc receptor for IgG and the signaling via this receptor. In the present study we evaluated whether other proteases could similarly enhance Fc gamma RII affinity. We furthermore assessed whether all cell types expressing Fc gamma RII display this effect. Therefore, proteins from the coagulation system and PMN-derived enzymes were tested for effects on Fc gamma RII-mediated ligand binding. Enzymes of the coagulation system were tested both in fibrinogen-depleted plasma, as well as in purified form. No effects were found on Fc gamma RII-mediated rosette formation for both situations. In contrast, supernatant of stimulated granulocytes as well as leucocyte elastase were observed to be active in augmenting EA-hIgG rosette formation of thrombocytes and myeloid cell lines K562 and U937. The B cell lines Raji and Daudi, did not show enhanced rosette formation after enzyme treatment. The active component from granulocyte supernatant was partially characterized as a serine esterase with an apparent Mw of 30 kD. We tested whether the isotype specificity of Fc gamma RII on K562 cells changes upon enzyme treatment. It was found that all three tested murine subclasses gamma 1, gamma 2a, gamma 2b, bound equally well to this receptor, and interaction with all isotypes was enhanced to the same extent.
Mol Immunol 1990 Dec
PMID:PMN-derived proteases enhance the affinity of Fc gamma receptor II on myeloid cells, but not on B cells. 214 7

Structures formed during the early stages of clot formation have been produced in a controlled manner by polymerization of soluble fibrin monomers prepared from dissolved normal clots that had been formed upon addition of thrombin to fibrinogen. In agreement with other studies using different approaches, electron microscopy of negatively contrasted or rotary-shadowed specimens of these preparations reveal two-stranded protofibrils, as well as shorter oligomers and fibrin monomers. Individual fibrin molecules are similar in appearance to fibrinogen, suggesting that no large-scale changes in conformation occur on removal of the fibrinopeptides. Moreover, these micrographs show details of the protofibril structure not previously seen. The visualization of clear cross-over points of the filaments making up the protofibril indicate that these structures are twisted. Diffraction patterns of electron micrographs of both protofibrils and fibers and computer modeling of protofibrils also suggest that these structures are twisted but not precisely ordered.
J Mol Biol 1990 Dec 05
PMID:Electron microscope investigation of the early stages of fibrin assembly. Twisted protofibrils and fibers. 225 25

Fibrinogen, the major structural protein involved in blood coagulation, is synthesized and secreted by the liver. In the frog Xenopus laevis, fibrinogen production is dramatically induced by glucocorticoids. The hormonal stimulation requires synthesis of three separate subunits, designated A alpha, B beta, and gamma. For investigation of the molecular mechanisms underlying this coordinate induction, we have isolated cDNA clones for the subunits of Xenopus fibrinogen. In this communication we describe the identification of clones for the gamma chain. Initially, a Xenopus liver cDNA library in pBR322 was screened with a rat gamma chain cDNA and a clone representing half of the 1600-base frog gamma mRNA was identified. This clone was shown to be complementary to gamma mRNA by hybrid selection of mRNA that translated in vitro into the gamma polypeptide. A clone about 1460 base pairs in length was then isolated from a Xenopus liver lambda gt10 cDNA library and subcloned into Bluescript SK-. This clone, designated X1 gamma 3, contains the entire 3'-end and lacks 38 bases at the 5'-end of gamma mRNA. The deduced amino acid sequence at the N-terminal is compatible with a signal peptide of 20-23 amino acids, in agreement with the calculated size of the frog gamma chain signal peptide. Following the signal sequence is a region of highly conserved amino acids that participate in disulfide bond formation critical for the maintenance of tertiary structure in mammalian fibrinogen. The gamma cDNA clone was used to measure gamma mRNA in purified Xenopus liver cells treated with glucocorticoids in primary culture.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Mol Cell Endocrinol 1990 Sep 10
PMID:Isolation and characterization of cDNA clones for the gamma subunit of Xenopus fibrinogen, the product of a coordinately regulated gene family. 228 32

Myofiber injury-repair was studied in the rat following blunt trauma to the lower leg in order to understand how the inflammatory and regenerative responses of muscles are altered when myofiber rupture is accompanied by bleeding and clotting reactions. A contusion injury to the muscles of the lower hindlimb of the rat was induced by applying an impact force of 4.7 N-m/cm2 to one leg. The gastrocnemius and soleus muscles were removed bilaterally and evaluated by histochemical and immunohistochemical techniques to document myofiber, vascular, and connective tissue alterations for several days following insult (6-120 hr). A significant increase in wet weight of the gastrocnemius muscle was noted 24 hr postinjury as fluid accumulation and bruising were evident in the muscles resulting from bleeding and inflammation. Vascular disruption was confirmed by the localization of some plasma constituents (fibrinogen, albumin, and complement C3) throughout the interstitial space and even inside some of the damaged myofibers. Inflammation was present and persisted for 5 days as evidenced by continued mast cell degranulation and increased vascular permeability. Using antibodies to identify specific proteoglycans which appear or disappear at various times during muscle regeneration, muscle repair could be followed. The repair process required approximately 10 days for restoration of morphologically intact myofibers. Thus, myofiber repair processes appear to be maintained even after disruption of the vascular system and ischemia following blunt trauma.
Exp Mol Pathol 1990 Feb
PMID:Extracellular matrix changes following blunt trauma to rat skeletal muscles. 230 15

Heat-inactivated calf-, human-, and especially fetal calf serum stimulate infection of Vero cells by cell culture-derived trypomastigotes of Trypanosoma cruzi: the stimulatory effect is more marked with extracellular activated parasites or trypsinized trypomastigotes than with recently released parasites. The augmented invasion is not the consequence of a stimulation of attachment of trypomastigotes to host cells. Various sialoglycoproteins like fetuin, transferrin, fibrinogen, alpha-1-antitrypsin, mucin and goat-IgG are also effective in enhancing in vitro infectivity. Colominic acid also stimulates invasion, but other non-sialic polyanionic compounds are either ineffective (chondroitin sulfate, poly-aspartic acid) or inhibitory (heparin, phytic acid, myo-inositol hexasulfate). Fetuin, the best stimulatory compound tested, gives half-maximal activation with approximately 0.03 mg ml-1, and total activation with 0.5-1 mg ml-1. The enhancement of infectivity is time-dependent (2-3 h for maximal activation) at 37 degrees C and does not occur at 0 degrees C. Desialidated-fetuin or -fetal calf serum do not stimulate infectivity at all. Treatment with fetuin of parasites alone (or Vero cells alone), followed by removal of free fetuin and by interaction with untreated Vero cells (or parasites) indicates that the stimulation effect of fetuin occurs mainly on the trypomastigotes. No specific binding of [125I]fetuin to the parasites could be demonstrated, and incubation with exogenous neuraminidase of trypomastigotes previously activated by fetuin, reverses nearly completely the stimulation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Mol Biochem Parasitol 1987 Jan 15
PMID:The effect of fetuin and other sialoglycoproteins on the in vitro penetration of Trypanosoma cruzi trypomastigotes into fibroblastic cells. 243 49


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