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At least 865 records · Page 48Linked to original sources
PubMed2001

The human gephyrin (GPHN) gene: structure, chromosome localization and expression in non-neuronal cells.

Gephyrin was first described as a peripheral membrane protein of 93 kDa anchoring the glycine receptor (GlyR) to subsynaptic microtubules and cytoskeleton. Analysis of knock-out mice demonstrated that gephyrin has additional functions in GABA(A) receptor localization at the synapse and in the biosynthetic pathway of the molybdenum cofactor (Moco). Here we describe a human non-neuronal gephyrin cDNA and the exon/intron organization of the human gephyrin gene. We found the coding region to consist of 27 exons and to span approximately 800 kb on the long arm of chromosome 14. This structure is almost identical to that of the mouse gephyrin gene except that sequences corresponding to three exons described in rat and mouse could not be identified in human. Mutations of the GlyR subunits and of gephyrin lead to severe neuromotor phenotypes in human and mouse. Hyperekplexia involves most frequently a mutation in the GlyR alpha1 subunit in humans. However, inactivation of the Moco biosynthesis pathway results in very similar symptomatology. The recent characterization of a deletion of two exons of the gephyrin gene in a patient with symptoms typical of Moco deficiency confirmed that the involvement of gephyrin in these pathologies cannot be excluded. The precise localization of the gephyrin gene allowed us to exclude it from being a candidate for the autosomal dominant spastic paraplegia, the locus of which maps to 14q between markers D14S259 and D14S1018. A description of its structure and exon boundaries should lay the groundwork for further analysis of its expression in humans.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Strontium speciation during reaction of kaolinite with simulated tank-waste leachate: bulk and microfocused EXAFS analysis.

Radioactive strontium (90Sr) is an important constituent of the complex wastes from past nuclear weapons production and has been stored in underground tanks at U.S. DOE sites (e.g., Hanford, WA). Using bulk and microfocused EXAFS spectroscopy, we examined temporal changes in solid-phase Sr speciation in kaolinite samples reacted for 1-369 d with high-pH, high ionic strength synthetic tank-waste leachate containing Sr(2+) and Cs(+) at 10(-3) mol kg(-1). Analyses of bulk EXAFS spectra showed that Sr initially forms a precipitate by 7 d with a local structure similar to SrCO(3-) (s). At 33 d, microfocused EXAFS of individual particles in one sample revealed a mixture of hydrated and dehydrated Sr associated with neoformed sodalite-type phases. At aging times of 93 d and longer, bulk EXAFS spectra and supporting characterizations indicated nonexchangeable Sr with a local structure consistent with incorporation into increasingly crystalline aluminosilicate particles, particularly sodalite. These experimental studies suggest that irreversible trapping of radionuclides occurs if they are present during the formation and aging of feldspathoid alteration products of local Si-bearing sediment minerals. This may serve as an effective contaminant sequestration mechanism at sites such as Hanford.

Carbonates↗
PubMed2006

Molecular modeling of porous carbons using the hybrid reverse Monte Carlo method.

We apply a simulation protocol based on the reverse Monte Carlo (RMC) method, which incorporates an energy constraint, to model porous carbons. This method is called hybrid reverse Monte Carlo (HRMC), since it combines the features of the Monte Carlo and reverse Monte Carlo methods. The use of the energy constraint term helps alleviate the problem of the presence of unrealistic features (such as three- and four-membered carbon rings), reported in previous RMC studies of carbons, and also correctly describes the local environment of carbon atoms. The HRMC protocol is used to develop molecular models of saccharose-based porous carbons in which hydrogen atoms are taken into account explicitly in addition to the carbon atoms. We find that the model reproduces the experimental pair correlation function with good accuracy. The local structure differs from that obtained with a previous model (Pikunic, J.; Clinard, C.; Cohaut, N.; Gubbins, K. E.; Guet, J. M.; Pellenq, R. J.-M.; Rannou, I.; Rouzaud, J. N. Langmuir 2003, 19 (20), 8565). We study the local structure by calculating the nearest neighbor distribution, bond angle distribution, and ring statistics.

Carbon↗
PubMed1998

Local genetic structure in red grouse (Lagopus lagopus scoticus): evidence from microsatellite DNA markers.

Allelic variation at seven hypervariable tri- and tetranucleotide microsatellite loci was used to determine levels of population differentiation between 14 populations of red grouse (Lagopus lagopus scoticus) in northeast Scotland, UK. Despite the potential for long-distance dispersal in grouse, and a semicontinuous habitat, significant population divergence was observed (mean RST = 0.153; P < 0.01) and an isolation-by-distance effect detected (Mantel test: P < 0.001). Examination of the spatial trend in principal component scores derived from allele frequencies among populations highlighted a barrier to gene flow that was confounding a simple isolation-by-distance effect. This barrier corresponded to an area of unsuitable habitat for grouse associated with a river system that bisected the study area. Mean genetic relatedness was higher for males than for females in all but one of the study populations, suggesting that the territorial behaviour and natal philopatry displayed by cocks have a manifold effect in generating the observed spatial genetic structure. Lower female relatedness values suggest a higher level of female-mediated gene flow, which is sufficient to prevent the loss of genetic variation from within populations and the onset of inbreeding effects. The potential consequences of local subdivision for red grouse populations are discussed.

Alleles↗
PubMed2003

A family of Ca2+-dependent activator proteins for secretion: comparative analysis of structure, expression, localization, and function.

Ca2+-dependent activator protein for secretion (CAPS) 1 is an essential cytosolic component of the protein machinery involved in large dense-core vesicle (LDCV) exocytosis and in the secretion of a subset of neurotransmitters. In the present study, we report the identification, cloning, and comparative characterization of a second mammalian CAPS isoform, CAPS2. The structure of CAPS2 and its function in LDCV exocytosis from PC12 cells are very similar to those of CAPS1. Both isoforms are strongly expressed in neuroendocrine cells and in the brain. In subcellular fractions of the brain, both CAPS isoforms are enriched in synaptic cytosol fractions and also present on vesicular fractions. In contrast to CAPS1, which is expressed almost exclusively in brain and neuroendocrine tissues, CAPS2 is also expressed in lung, liver, and testis. Within the brain, CAPS2 expression seems to be restricted to certain brain regions and cell populations, whereas CAPS1 expression is strong in all neurons. During development, CAPS2 expression is constant between embryonic day 10 and postnatal day 60, whereas CAPS1 expression is very low before birth and increases after postnatal day 0 to reach a plateau at postnatal day 21. Light microscopic data indicate that both CAPS isoforms are specifically enriched in synaptic terminals. Ultrastructural analyses show that CAPS1 is specifically localized to glutamatergic nerve terminals. We conclude that at the functional level, CAPS2 is largely redundant with CAPS1. Differences in the spatial and temporal expression patterns of the two CAPS isoforms most likely reflect as yet unidentified subtle functional differences required in particular cell types or during a particular developmental period. The abundance of CAPS proteins in synaptic terminals indicates that they may also be important for neuronal functions that are not exclusively related to LDCV exocytosis.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1998

Study of amorphous alloy structures with medium range atomic ordering.

Structures with atomic medium range order (MRO) extending as small as approximately 2 nm in amorphous alloys can be observed under suitable defocus conditions as clear lattice fringe images by means of axial-beam high-resolution electron microscopy (HREM). In this article, our studies of local structure observation in some metal-metalloid amorphous alloys with the "selected-defocus method" are introduced. Also introduced are an HREM image simulation study of amorphous alloy structures and a nano-probe (1-1.5 nm) electron diffraction analysis of MRO structure. A multislice image simulation study for suitable structure models (1) with a random atomic distribution, (2) with MRO regions having different sizes, distributions, and specimen thicknesses, is a necessary step to verify the MRO observation in amorphous alloys. It was demonstrated that not only HREM information but also nano-diffraction information are necessary in order to understand local structures of amorphous alloys.

Alloys↗
PubMed2001

On the nature of conformational openings: native and unfolded-state hydrogen and thiol-disulfide exchange studies of ferric aquomyoglobin.

Native-state amide hydrogen exchange (HX) of proteins in the presence of denaturant has provided valuable details on the structures of equilibrium folding intermediates. Here, we extend HX theory to model thiol group exchange (SX) in single cysteine-containing variants of sperm whale ferric aquomyoglobin. SX is complementary to HX in that it monitors conformational opening events that expose side-chains, rather than the main chain, to solvent. A simple two-process model, consisting of EX2-limited local structural fluctuations and EX1-limited global unfolding, adequately accounts for all HX data. SX is described by the same model except at very low denaturant concentrations and when the bulky labeling reagent 5,5'-dithiobis (2-nitrobenzoic acid) (DTNB) is used. Under these conditions SX can occur by a novel denaturant-dependent process. This anomalous behavior is not observed when the smaller labeling reagent methyl methanethiosulfonate is employed, suggesting that it reflects a denaturant-induced increase in the amplitudes of local structural fluctuations. It also is not seen in heme-free apomyoglobin, which may indicate that local openings are sufficiently large in the absence of denaturant to allow DTNB unhindered access. Differences in SX kinetics obtained using the two labeling reagents provide estimates of the sizes of local opening reactions at different sites in the protein. At all sequence positions examined except for position 73, the same opening event appears to facilitate exchange of both backbone amide and side-chain thiol groups. The C73 thiol group is exposed by a low-energy fluctuation that does not expose its amide group to exchange.

Amides↗
PubMed2002

Stiffness of the distal loop restricts the structural heterogeneity of the transition state ensemble in SH3 domains.

Protein engineering experiments and Phi(F)-value analysis of SH3 domains reveal that their transition state ensemble (TSE) is conformationally restricted, i.e. the fluctuations in the transition state (TS) structures are small. In the TS of src SH3 and alpha-spectrin SH3 the distal loop and the associated hairpin are fully structured, while the rest of the protein is relatively disordered. If native structure predominantly determines the folding mechanism, the findings for SH3 folds raise the question: What are the features of the native topology that determine the nature of the TSE? We propose that the presence of stiff loops in the native state that connect local structural elements (such as the distal hairpin in SH3 domains) conformationally restricts TSE. We validate this hypothesis using the simulations of a "control" system (16 residue beta-hairpin forming C-terminal fragment of the GBl protein) and its variants. In these fragments the role of bending rigidity in determining the nature of the TSE can be directly examined without complications arising from interactions with the rest of the protein. The TSE structures in the beta-hairpins are determined computationally using cluster analysis and limited Phi(F)-value analysis. Both techniques prove that the conformational heterogeneity decreases as the bending rigidity of the loop increases. To extend this finding to SH3 domains a measure of bending rigidity based on loop curvature, which utilizes native structures in the Protein Data Bank (PDB), is introduced. Using this measure we show that, with few exceptions, the ordering of stiffness of the distal, n-src, and RT loops in the 29 PDB structures of SH3 domains is conserved. Combining the simulation results for beta-hairpins and the analysis of PDB structures for SH3 domains, we propose that the stiff distal loop restricts the conformational fluctuations in the TSE. We also predict that constraining the distal loop to be preformed in the denatured ensemble should not alter the nature of TSE. On the other hand, if the amino and carboxy terminals are cross-linked to form a circular polypeptide chain, the pathways and TSs are altered. These contrasting scenarios are illustrated using simulations of cross-linked WT beta-hairpin fragments. Computations of bending rigidities for immunoglobulin-like domain proteins reveal no clear separation in the stiffness of their loops. In the beta-sandwich proteins, which have large fractions of non-local native contacts, the nature of the TSE cannot be apparently determined using purely local structural characteristics. Nevertheless, the measure of loop stiffness still provides qualitative predictions of the ordered regions in the TSE of Ig27 and TenFn3.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2001

The mouse lp(A3)/Edg7 lysophosphatidic acid receptor gene: genomic structure, chromosomal localization, and expression pattern.

The extracellular signaling molecule, lysophosphatidic acid (LPA), mediates proliferative and morphological effects on cells and has been proposed to be involved in several biological processes including neuronal development, wound healing, and cancer progression. Three mammalian G protein-coupled receptors, encoded by genes designated lp (lysophospholipid) receptor or edg (endothelial differentiation gene), mediate the effects of LPA, activating similar (e.g. Ca(2+) release) as well as distinct (neurite retraction) responses. To understand the evolution and function of LPA receptor genes, we characterized lp(A3)/Edg7 in mouse and human and compared the expression pattern with the other two known LPA receptor genes (lp(A1)/Edg2 and lp(A2)/Edg4non-mutant). We found mouse and human lp(A3) to have nearly identical three-exon genomic structures, with introns upstream of the coding region for transmembrane domain (TMD) I and within the coding region for TMD VI. This structure is similar to lp(A1) and lp(A2), indicating a common ancestral gene with two introns. We localized mouse lp(A3) to distal Chromosome 3 near the varitint waddler (Va) gene, in a region syntenic with the human lp(A3) chromosomal location (1p22.3-31.1). We found highest expression levels of each of the three LPA receptor genes in adult mouse testes, relatively high expression levels of lp(A2) and lp(A3) in kidney, and moderate expression of lp(A2) and lp(A3) in lung. All lp(A) transcripts were expressed during brain development, with lp(A1) and lp(A2) transcripts expressed during the embryonic neurogenic period, and lp(A3) transcript during the early postnatal period. Our results indicate both overlapping as well as distinct functions of lp(A1), lp(A2), and lp(A3).

Alternative Splicing↗
PubMed2005

Conformational preferences of the HIV-1 principal neutralizing determinant.

The model describing the conformational properties of the HIV-1 principal neutralizing determinant in the geometric space of dihedrals was generated in terms of NMR spectroscopy data published in literature. To gain an object in view, the following successive steps were put into effect: (i) the NMR-based local structures for the HIV(MN) V3 loop were determined in water and in a mixed water/trifluoroethanol (TFE) solvent (7:3), (ii) in either case, the conformations of its irregular segments were analyzed and the secondary structure elements identified, (iii) to appreciate the degree of conformational mobility of the stretch of interest, the simulated structures were compared with each other, (iv) to detect the amino acids retaining their conformations inside the diverse HIV-1 isolates, the structures computed were collated with the one derived previously for the V3 loop from Thailand isolate, and (v) as a matter of record, the structurally rigid residues, that may present the forward-looking targets for AIDS drug researches, were revealed. Summing up the principal results arising from these studies, the following conclusions were drawn: I. The HIV(MN) V3 loop offers the highly mobile fragment of gp120 sensitive to its environment whose changes trigger the large-scale structural reforms, bringing in substantial altering the secondary structure of this functionally important site of the virus envelope. II. In water, it exhibits extended site 1-14 separated by double beta-turn 15-20 with unordered region 21-35. III. Adding the TFE gives rise to destruction of the regular structure in the V3 loop N-terminal, stimulates the formation of 3(10)-helix in site 24-31, and affects also its central region 20-25 forming the HIV-1 immunogenic crown. IV. Regardless of statistically significant differences between local structures of the HIV(MN) V3 loop in water and in water/TFE solution, over one-third of residues keeps their conformational states; the register of these amino acids comprises Asn-25 critical for virus binding with primary cell receptor CD4 as well as Arg-3 critical for utilization of CCR5 coreceptor. V. There are no conserved structural motifs within the V3 loops from Minnesota and Thailand HIV-1 strains. However, perceptible portion of amino acids (more than 35%), including those appearing in the functionally important regions of gp120, holds the values of dihedral angles in which case. The implications are discussed in conjunction with the data on the experimental observations for the HIV-1 principal neutralizing determinant.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2000

SPLASH: structural pattern localization analysis by sequential histograms.

MOTIVATION: The discovery of sparse amino acid patterns that match repeatedly in a set of protein sequences is an important problem in computational biology. Statistically significant patterns, that is patterns that occur more frequently than expected, may identify regions that have been preserved by evolution and which may therefore play a key functional or structural role. Sparseness can be important because a handful of non-contiguous residues may play a key role, while others, in between, may be changed without significant loss of function or structure. Similar arguments may be applied to conserved DNA patterns. Available sparse pattern discovery algorithms are either inefficient or impose limitations on the type of patterns that can be discovered. RESULTS: This paper introduces a deterministic pattern discovery algorithm, called Splash, which can find sparse amino or nucleic acid patterns matching identically or similarly in a set of protein or DNA sequences. Sparse patterns of any length, up to the size of the input sequence, can be discovered without significant loss in performances. Splash is extremely efficient and embarrassingly parallel by nature. Large databases, such as a complete genome or the non-redundant SWISS-PROT database can be processed in a few hours on a typical workstation. Alternatively, a protein family or superfamily, with low overall homology, can be analyzed to discover common functional or structural signatures. Some examples of biologically interesting motifs discovered by Splash are reported for the histone I and for the G-Protein Coupled Receptor families. Due to its efficiency, Splash can be used to systematically and exhaustively identify conserved regions in protein family sets. These can then be used to build accurate and sensitive PSSM or HMM models for sequence analysis. AVAILABILITY: Splash is available to non-commercial research centers upon request, conditional on the signing of a test field agreement. CONTACT: acal@us.ibm.com, Splash main page http://www.research.ibm.com/splash

Algorithms↗
PubMed1992

Contributions of the polar, uncharged amino acids to the stability of staphylococcal nuclease: evidence for mutational effects on the free energy of the denatured state.

In order to quantitate the contributions of the polar, uncharged amino acids to the stability of the native state of staphylococcal nuclease, each of the 13 alanines, 9 glycines, 9 threonines, 6 prolines, 6 glutamines, 6 asparagines, and 3 serines was substituted, either with both alanine and glycine or with 1 of these 2 amino acids plus valine. For each mutant, the stability to reversible denaturation (delta GH2O) was quantitated by determining the Kapp for this reaction as a function of guanidine hydrochloride concentration. In addition, the parameter mGuHCl (= d(delta G)/d[GuHCl]) was calculated from the data. To identify the local structural features responsible for the relatively large and variable changes in delta GH2O and mGuHCl observed for the same type of substitution at different locations in nuclease, statistical correlations were sought between delta GH2O, mGuHCl, and a number of descriptors of the local structure. As with substitutions of the large hydrophobic amino acids [Shortle, D., Stites, W. E., & Meeker, A. K. (1990) Biochemistry 29, 8033-8041], mutation of polar, uncharged residues to Gly leads to a change in stability that, on average, correlates well with the degree to which the wild-type residue is buried. This correlation is especially significant for threonine, an amino acid with both polar and hydrophobic character, but is not demonstrated for the more typically hydrophobic residue alanine. As reported in the previous study of alanine/glycine substitutions of hydrophobic residues, a significant correlation between changes in stability and changes in the value of mGuHCl is again observed, strengthening the conclusion that the putative structural changes in the denatured state which lead to increases or decreases in mGuHCl are responsible for a significant fraction of the stability loss for an average mutant. The existence of this correlation is consistent with the denatured state of wild-type staphylococcal nuclease having evolved to a relatively high free energy via optimization of a balance between a maximal exposure of hydrophobic surface and a minimal gain in chain entropy. On average, mutations are less stable in proportion to the extent of which they perturb this balance. A new and puzzling correlation is reported between the extent of buriedness of a residue in the wild-type native state versus the difference in mGuHCl between the Ala mutation and the Gly mutation at that position.

Alanine↗
PubMed2004

Pressure-induced sharp coordination change in liquid germanate.

Local structures around germanium in liquid germanate have been investigated by means of in situ x-ray absorption measurements up to 9 GPa at 1273 K. Liquid germanate consisting of tetrahedrally coordinated germanium contracts with increasing pressure without significant changes in the local structure up to 2.5 GPa and then shows an abrupt fourfold-to-sixfold coordination change around 3 GPa. The coordination change is completed below 4 GPa where upon a high-density liquid consisting of octahedrally coordinated germanium becomes stable. The GeO6 octahedron in the high-density liquid is more compressible than that in solids.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1996

Secondary structure, membrane localization, and coassembly within phospholipid membranes of synthetic segments derived from the N- and C-termini regions of the ROMK1 K+ channel.

The hydropathy plot of the inwardly rectifying ROMK1 K+ channel, which reveals two transmembrane and a pore region domains, also reveals areas of intermediate hydrophobicity in the N terminus (M0) and in the C terminus (post-M2). Peptides that correspond to M0, post-M2, and a control peptide, pre-M0, were synthesized and characterized for their structure, affinity to phospholipid membranes, organizational state in membranes, and ability to self-assemble and coassemble in the membrane-bound state. CD spectroscopy revealed that both M0 and post-M2 adopt highly alpha-helical structures in 1% SDS and 40% TFE/water, whereas pre-M0 is not alpha-helical in either 1% SDS or 40% TFE/water. Binding experiments with NBD-labeled peptides demonstrated that both M0 and post-M2, but not pre-M0, bind to zwitterionic phospholipid membranes with partition coefficients of 10(3)-10(5) M-1. A surface localization for both post-M2 and M0 was indicated by NBD shift, tryptophan quenching experiments with brominated phospholipids, and enzymatic cleavage. Resonance energy transfer measurements between fluorescently labeled pairs of donor (NBD)/ acceptor (rhodamine) peptides revealed that M0 and post-M2 can coassemble in their membrane-bound state, but cannot self-associate when membrane-bound. The results are in agreement with recent data indicating that amino acids in the carboxy terminus of inwardly rectifying K+ channels have a major role in specifying the pore properties of the channels (Taglialatela M, Wible BA, Caporaso R, Brown AM, 1994 Science 264:844-847; Pessia M, Bond CT, Kavanaugh MP, Adelman JP, 1995, Neuron 14:1039-1045). The relevance of the results presented herein to the suggested model for the structure of the ROMK1 channel and to general aspects of molecular recognition between membrane-bound polypeptides are also discussed.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2005

The folding energy landscape and phosphorylation: modeling the conformational switch of the NFAT regulatory domain.

An energy landscape approach predicts the conformational changes of the configurations of the regulatory domain of the protein nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT) caused by phosphorylation of specific multiple sites. Structurally local effects and secondary structural changes are modeled using all-atom Brownian dynamics to investigate the changes of the backbone torsional distributions upon phosphorylation. For tertiary and global changes, we employ a coarse-grained model to sample ensembles of conformations both with and without phosphorylation. At the secondary structure level, phosphorylation moderately increases the helical propensity and gives a more rigid local backbone conformation. The tertiary effects of phosphorylation caused by the extensive charge modification are more pronounced and collectively change the conformation of the regulatory domain of NFAT from a flexible globular ensemble to a rather rigid helical bundle, blocking access to the nuclear localization sequence. These studies give computational support to one scenario conjectured from experiments.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1993

Human tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI) gene: complete genomic structure and localization on the genetic map of chromosome 2q.

Tissue factor pathway inhibitor (TFPI), a protease inhibitor that circulates in association with plasma lipoproteins (VLDL, LDL and HDL), helps to regulate the extrinsic blood coagulation cascade. We have cloned a 125-kb genomic region containing the entire human TFPI gene on six overlapping cosmids and prepared a restriction map of this contig to clarify gene structure. More than half (45 kb) of the 85-kb gene is occupied with 5' noncoding elements: coding begins at exon 3. A HindIII RFLP identified with one cosmid was genotyped in the CEPH panel of 59 reference families. Linkage analysis using markers on human chromosome 2 located the TFPI gene on 2q, 36 cM proximal to D2S43(pYNZ15) and 13 cM distal to the crystalline gamma-polypeptide locus CRYGP1(p5G1).

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1996

Human high affinity, Na(+)-dependent L-glutamate/L-aspartate transporter GLAST-1 (EAAT-1): gene structure and localization to chromosome 5p11-p12.

The gene of the human L-glutamate transporter hGLAST-1 (EAAT-1) has been isolated and characterized. The 1626 bp cDNA open reading frame (542 aa) is distributed over ten exons and at least 85 kb on chromosome 5p11-p12. The gene is unrelated to any other previously described neurotransmitter transporter gene family, but its exon/intron structure corresponds largely to that of the Na(+)-dependent neutral amino acid transporter ASCT-1. GLAST-1, ASCT-1 and the glutamate transporters GLT-1 and EAAC-1 have strongly similar amino acid sequences. The L-glutamate transporter gene structures might help to understand the correlation of L-glutamate reuptake in neurodegenerative disorders.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2006

Solution structure of human von Willebrand factor studied using small angle neutron scattering.

von Willebrand factor (VWF) binding to platelets under high fluid shear is an important step regulating atherothrombosis. We applied light and small angle neutron scattering to study the solution structure of human VWF multimers and protomer. Results suggest that these proteins resemble prolate ellipsoids with radius of gyration (R(g)) of approximately 75 and approximately 30 nm for multimer and protomer, respectively. The ellipsoid dimensions/radii are 175 x 28 nm for multimers and 70 x 9.1 nm for protomers. Substructural repeat domains are evident within multimeric VWF that are indicative of elements of the protomer quarternary structure (16 nm) and individual functional domains (4.5 nm). Amino acids occupy only approximately 2% of the multimer and protomer volume, compared with 98% for serum albumin and 35% for fibrinogen. VWF treatment with guanidine.HCl, which increases VWF susceptibility to proteolysis by ADAMTS-13, causes local structural changes at length scales <10 nm without altering protein R(g). Treatment of multimer but not protomer VWF with random homobifunctional linker BS(3) prior to reduction of intermonomer disulfide linkages and Western blotting reveals a pattern of dimer and trimer units that indicate the presence of stable intermonomer non-covalent interactions within the multimer. Overall, multimeric VWF appears to be a loosely packed ellipsoidal protein with non-covalent interactions between different monomer units stabilizing its solution structure. Local, and not large scale, changes in multimer conformation are sufficient for ADAMTS-13-mediated proteolysis.

Animals↗