Orientation of the Carboxy-terminal Regions of Fibrin γ Chain Dimers Determined from the Crosslinked Products Formed in Mixtures of Fibrin, Fragment D, and Factor XIIIa

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

1995

Publisher

Schattauer

Source Publication

Thrombosis and Haemostasis

Source ISSN

0340-6245

Original Item ID

DOI: 10.1055/s-0038-1649890

Abstract

There are two schools of thought regarding the orientation of the intermolecular ∈-amino-(γ-glutamyl) lysine isopeptide bonds formed between γ chains in the D domains of assembled fibrin fibers. Some investigators believe that these bonds are oriented parallel to the direction of fiber growth (longitudinally) at the contacting ends of fibrin D domains (‘DD-long’), whereas others believe that these bonds are oriented across the two-stranded fibril, between D domains in opposing strands (‘DD-transverse’). To distinguish between these two possibilities, the structure of crosslinked products formed in mixtures of fibrin, plasmic fragment D, and factor XIIIa were analyzed, based upon this rationale: Complex formation between D fragments and a fibrin template depends upon the non-covalent ‘D:E’ interaction between each fibrin E domain and two D fragments (‘D:fibrin:D’). If carboxy-terminal γ chains in the D:fibrin:D complex become aligned in a DD-long configuration, only crosslinked fragment D dimers (‘D-D’) will result and the fibrin ‘template’ will not become crosslinked to the associated D fragments. If instead, γ chain crosslinks form transversely between the D fragments and fibrin, covalently linked D-fibrin complexes will result.

SDS-PAGE of factor XIIIa crosslinked mixtures of fibrin and fragment D demonstrated products of a size and subunit composition indicating D-fibrin and D-fibrin-D formation. Small amounts of D dimers were also formed at the same levels as were formed in mixtures of fragment D and factor XIIIa alone. Electron microscopic images of D-fibrin-D complexes prepared under physiological buffer conditions demonstrated that the D fragments were associated with the central E domain of the fibrin molecule, but that they could be dissociated from this non-covalent association in 2% acetic acid. These findings indicate that γ chain crosslinks occur transversely in D:fibrin:D complexes and permit the extrapolated conclusion that γ chain crosslinks are also positioned transversely in an assembled fibrin polymer.

Comments

Thrombosis and Haemostasis, Vol. 74, No. 4 (1995): 1113-1119. DOI.

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