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Production of fibronectin by peritoneal macrophages and concentration of fibronectin in peritoneal fluid from patients with or without endometriosis.

Fibronectin, a known growth factor for fibroblasts, is produced by alveolar macrophages from patients with interstitial pulmonary fibrosis. Because peritoneal macrophages have been implicated in the disease process of endometriosis, we measured the production of fibronectin by peritoneal macrophages in vitro and the concentration of fibronectin in peritoneal fluid samples. Twenty-nine patients had a normal pelvis, 22 had endometriosis, and 14 had tubal occlusion and/or adhesions. Human peritoneal macrophages demonstrated de novo synthesis of fibronectin. The peritoneal macrophage fibronectin was detected by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for serum fibronectin. Peritoneal macrophages from patients with endometriosis produced approximately three times the amount of fibronectin as normal patients or patients with tubal occlusion and/or adhesions (P less than or equal to .01 and P less than or equal to .02, respectively). The mean peritoneal fluid concentration of fibronectin, however, was about 30% lower in patients with endometriosis than in normal patients (P less than or equal to .02). We suggest that increased peritoneal macrophage fibronectin production in patients with endometriosis may contribute to the adhesion formation and associated reactive fibrosis seen in this disease, and may also influence the implantation of endometrial cells and their subsequent growth in the pelvis.

Ascitic Fluid↗

Augmentation of phagocytosis by a specific fibronectin fragment that links particulate activators to the fibronectin adherence receptor of human monocytes.

Intact human plasma fibronectin of 44,000 m.w. and a fibronectin fragment of 180,000 m.w. promote dose-dependent adherence of gelatin-coated particles to human monocytes without phagocytosis. Both of these proteins, however, augment monocyte ingestion of gelatin-coated targets that are particulate activators of the alternative complement pathway or of nonactivators bearing IgG. Unlike intact fibronectin, the 180,000 m.w. fragment also binds directly to particulate activators that lack gelatin to augment their phagocytosis by human monocytes. Prior attachment to monocytes of gelatin-coated sheep erythrocytes bearing increasing concentrations of intact fibronectin decreases in a dose-dependent fashion the capacity of these monocytes to engage in augmented phagocytosis of particulate activators opsonized with the 180,000 m.w. fibronectin. Occupation of the monocyte fibronectin receptors with particle-bound, intact fibronectin does not decrease monocyte phagocytosis of plain particulate activators or of IgG-coated particles. Thus, the 180,000 m.w. fibronectin fragment both directly opsonizes particulate activators and interacts with monocyte fibronectin receptors to promote particle adherence, thereby enhancing phagocytosis through a concerted action with the distinct receptors for particulate activators.

Cells, Cultured↗

Inflamed fibronectin: an altered fibronectin enhances neutrophil adhesion.

Recent investigations have emphasized the role of activated granulocytes in mediating vascular endothelial injury in the pathogenesis of shock lung. In vitro studies have indicated that tight adherence of the neutrophil to the endothelium is crucial for the development of cellular injury. Fibronectin is critical to cell-to-substratum and cell-to-cell interactions. Since fibronectin resides in plasma, on endothelial cell surfaces and is secreted into cell matrices, the adhesive properties of fibronectin must be modulated, lest universal cell agglomeration occur, yet be enhanced when cell attachment is appropriate. In these studies, treatment of fibronectin-coated surfaces with neutrophil release products increased the adhesion of activated neutrophils. Similarly, endothelial cells treated with neutrophil release products become a more adherent substrate for neutrophils. This enhanced adherence generated by treatment of fibronectin with neutrophil supernatants is inhibitable by heat and the lysosomal proteinase inhibitor, pepstatin-A. Neutrophil release products cause proteolytic fragmentation of fibronectin and enhanced fibronectin immunofluorescence on endothelial cells. In addition, neutrophils are more injurious to endothelial cells that have been pretreated with neutrophil release products. Neutrophils may enhance their own adherence to endothelial cells by altering fibronectin, and this altered, or "inflamed," fibronectin may serve as an amplifier of inflammation.

Cell Adhesion↗

Temporal relationships of F-actin bundle formation, collagen and fibronectin matrix assembly, and fibronectin receptor expression to wound contraction.

Wound contraction can substantially reduce the amount of new tissue needed to reestablish organ integrity after tissue loss. Fibroblasts, rich in F-actin bundles, generate the force of wound contraction. Fibronectin-containing microfibrils link fibroblasts to each other and to collagen bundles and thereby provide transduction cables across the wound for contraction. The temporal relationships of F-actin bundle formation, collagen and fibronectin matrix assembly, and fibronectin receptor expression to wound contraction have not been determined. To establish these relationships, we used a cutaneous gaping wound model in outbred Yorkshire pigs. Granulation tissue filled approximately 80% of the wound space by day 5 after injury while wound contraction was first apparent at day 10. Neither actin bundles nor fibronectin receptors were observed in 5-d wound fibroblasts. Although fibronectin fibrils were assembled on the surfaces of 5-d fibroblasts, few fibrils coursed between cells. Day-7 fibroblasts stained strongly for nonmuscle-type F-actin bundles consistent with a contractile fibroblast phenotype. These cells expressed fibronectin receptors, were embedded in a fibronectin matrix that appeared to connect fibroblasts to the matrix and to each other, and were coaligned across the wound. Transmission EM confirmed the presence of microfilament bundles, cell-cell and cell-matrix linkages at day 7. Fibroblast coalignment, matrix interconnections, and actin bundles became more pronounced at days 10 and 14 coinciding with tissue contraction. These findings demonstrate that granulation tissue formation, F-actin bundle and fibronectin receptor expression in wound fibroblasts, and fibroblast-matrix linkage precede wound contraction.

Actins↗

Motility of fibronectin receptor-deficient cells on fibronectin and vitronectin: collaborative interactions among integrins.

Cells are capable of adhering to and migrating on protein components of the extracellular matrix. These cell-matrix interactions are thought to be mediated largely through a family of cell surface receptors termed integrins. However, the manner in which individual integrins are involved in cell adhesion and motility has not been fully determined. To explore this issue, we previously selected a series of CHO variants that are deficient in expression of the integrin alpha 5 beta 1, the "classical" fibronectin receptor. Two sets of subclones of these variants were defined which respectively express approximately 20% or 2% of fibronectin receptor on the cell surface when compared to wild-type cells (Schreiner, C. L., J. S. Bauer, Y. N. Danilov, S. Hussein, M. M. Sczekan, and R. L. Juliano. 1989. J. Cell Biol. 109:3157-3167). In the current study, the variant clones were tested for haptotactic motility on substrata coated with fibronectin or vitronectin. Data from assays using fibronectin show that cellular motility of the 20% variants was substantially decreased (30-75% of wild type), while the motility of the 2% variants was nearly abolished (2-20% of wild type). Surprisingly, a similar pattern was seen for haptotactic motility of both 2% and 20% variants when vitronectin was used (approximately 20-30% of wild type). The reduced haptotactic motility of the fibronectin receptor-deficient variant clones on vitronectin was shown not to be due to reduced vitronectin receptor (alpha v beta 3) expression nor to a failure of these variants to adhere to vitronectin substrata. Transfection of the deficient variants with a cDNA for the human alpha 5 subunit resulted in normal levels of fibronectin receptor expression (as a human alpha 5/hamster beta 1 chimera) and restored the motility of the CHO variants on fibronectin and vitronectin. This indicates that expression of the alpha 5 subunit is required for normal haptotactic motility on vitronectin substrata and suggests that the fibronectin receptor (alpha 5 beta 1) plays a cooperative role with vitronectin receptors in cell motility.

Animals↗

Fibronectin mediates Treponema pallidum cytadherence through recognition of fibronectin cell-binding domain.

The specificity of the interaction between Treponema pallidum and fibronectin was demonstrated. Treatment of host cells with only antifibronectin sera and not anticollagen or antilaminin sera, inhibited treponemal cytadsorption. Incubation of fibronectin-coated coverslips with monoclonal antibody to the cell-binding domain of fibronectin reduced treponemal attachment to the same extent as antifibronectin serum. Both iodinated fibronectin and iodinated cell-binding domain bound to T. pallidum in a saturable manner. Specificity of the T. pallidum association with the cell-binding domain was the most effective inhibitor of the binding of either radioiodinated cell-binding domain or fibronectin to T. pallidum. Scatchard analysis gave Kd on the order of 10(-7) M for both cell-binding domain and fibronectin binding to T. pallidum, consistent with the high affinity interaction of these organisms with host cell surfaces. Finally, the same level of attachment of treponemes was achieved on coverslips coated with cell-binding domain as that observed for organisms incubated with fibronectin, indicating that the cell-binding domain polypeptide is functionally identical to fibronectin in mediating T. pallidum adherence.

Adhesiveness↗

Distribution of fibronectin and fibronectin-binding proteins, AGp110 and integrin alpha 5 beta 1, during chemically induced hepatocarcinogenesis in adult rats.

We have used single- and double-label immunocytochemistry to examine the distribution of AGp110, integrin alpha 5 beta 1 and fibronectin in adult rat liver during carcinogenesis induced by aflatoxin B1 or diethylnitrosamine. In normal liver fibronectin and the fibronectin integrin receptor alpha 5 beta 1 are localized on all three domains of the parenchymal cell surface: sinusoidal, lateral and canalicular. In contrast, AGp110, a non-integrin monomeric glycoprotein with fibronectin receptor properties, is confined to the bile canalicular (apical) plasma membrane of hepatocytes. Hepatocarcinogenesis induced by aflatoxin B1 causes altered cell foci to form in the parenchyma, followed by enlargement of these foci to form pre-neoplastic nodules and finally hepatocellular carcinomas of either poorly differentiated, trabecular or adenocarcinoma morphology. Expression of AGp110 decreased to a minimal level, at first selectively in altered cell foci, from the 9th week of treatment, and then indiscriminately in poorly differentiated carcinomas. The same lesions that were deficient in AGp110 also displayed a reduced level of fibronectin and alpha 5 beta 1, although the observed change in AGp110 demarcated altered foci and poorly differentiated tumour lesions more sharply, since expression of alpha 5 beta 1 and fibronectin, though substantially reduced, was still faintly apparent on the cell surface. Small acinar structures, observed in late hyperplastic nodules and in trabecular carcinomas, exhibited even, pericellular staining of fibronectin and alpha 5 beta 1, including prominent staining of the lumen area, whereas staining of AGp110 appeared to be confined to the lumen. In larger ducts of overt adenocarcinomas, fibronectin and alpha 5 beta 1 were distributed along the basal surface of the epithelium and AGp110 on the apical domain.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗

Adhesion of human T-lymphoid cells to fibronectin is mediated by two different fibronectin domains.

Lymphocyte adhesion to components of extracellular matrices (i.e. fibronectin) is important for their proper localization in tissues and inflammatory sites. We have studied the attachment of the human cell line HUT-78 (mature T lymphocytes) to fibronectin and to several tryptic fragments of fibronectin. HUT-78 cells effectively adhered to surfaces coated with two Hep II domain-containing fragments of 38,000 and 58,000 MW derived from the A and B chains of fibronectin, respectively. Cells also bound to an 80,000 MW fragment containing the RGDS sequence of fibronectin. Cell adhesion to the 38,000 MW fragment was completely inhibited (100%) by cell preincubation with the soluble 38,000 MW fragment; it was partially inhibited (30-37%) by preincubation with the 58,000 MW fragment or with a synthetic peptide CS-1, comprising the first 25 amino acid residues of the alternatively spliced connecting segment (IIICS), which is present in the A chain of fibronectin and in the 38,000 MW fragment. Cell preincubation with RGDS-containing synthetic peptides or with the 80,000 MW fragment, did not affect attachment to 38,000 MW-coated surfaces. Moreover, preincubation of HUT-78 cells with 38,000 MW fragment had no effect on cell adhesion to 80,000 MW-coated wells, while preincubation with 80,000 MW fragment completely inhibited cell attachment to these surfaces. These results strongly suggest the involvement of two different cell surface receptors which recognize the Hep II/IIICS site and the RGDS site independently. Preincubation with either 38,000 or 80,000 MW fragments prevented cell attachment to fibronectin, indicating that adhesion to the intact molecule requires interaction with both regions. Therefore T-lymphocyte adherence to fibronectin-containing matrices may be regulated by the co-expression of both receptors at the cell surface.

Cell Adhesion↗

Identification with monoclonal antibodies of different regions of human plasma fibronectin, including that which interacts with human monocyte fibronectin receptors.

The determinant specificities of five monoclonal anti-fibronectin antibodies, designated BC7, CE9, BD4, AB3 and CPG1, were defined and mapped within intact human plasma fibronectin by immunoblot analyses with defined fragments of fibronectin. The latter were derived by tryptic, chymotryptic or cathepsin D digestion of the intact molecule and fractionated by DE-cellulose chromatography and gelatin and/or heparin affinity chromatography. Monoclonal BC7 recognizes intrachain disulphide-formed determinants within the 27,000 MW N-terminal domain; monoclonal CE9 recognizes determinants within an 18,000 MW fragment immediately adjacent to the carboxyl end of the gelatin-binding domain; monoclonal BD4 recognizes determinants within the cell-adhesive domain and within 150,000 of the N-terminus; monoclonal AB3 recognizes intrachain disulphide-formed determinants within 35,000 of the COOH-terminus of the intact molecule and detectable only on the alpha-chain polypeptide subunit; and monoclonal CPG1 recognizes determinants present on both chains of the intact molecule and immediately adjacent to the interchain disulphide bonds at the COOH-terminus. None of the epitopes recognized by these monoclonal antibodies is present at alternative regions of the intact molecule. Fab fragments of each of these monoclonal antibodies were incubated with gelatin-coated sheep erythrocytes which had been reacted with a fixed amount of intact plasma fibronectin. When these target particles were incubated with monolayers of human monocytes and the resultant rosettes were quantitated, the Fab fragments of BD4 markedly inhibited the proportion of monocytes binding these fibronectin-bearing targets, whereas none of the other Fab fragments had an inhibitory effect. Thus, monocyte fibronectin receptors which mediate adherence of fibronectin bridges to a target via gelatin recognize regions within the cell-adhesive domains of intact fibronectin but not regions at the amino or carboxy terminals.

Antibodies, Monoclonal↗

The ultrastructural localization of fibronectin in the lining layer of rheumatoid arthritis synovium: the synthesis of fibronectin by type B lining cells.

The distribution of fibronectin in the lining layer of inflamed rheumatoid arthritis (RA) synovium has been ultrastructurally investigated using an anti-human plasma fibronectin antibody. The hyperplasia of lining cells was prominent in the lining layer of the inflamed RA synovium. A high level of fibronectin was localized in this region. Ultrastructurally the fibronectin was observed on the surface of both type A (type M) and type B (type F) cells, and in the extracellular fibrin-like material. This glycoprotein was detectable in rough endoplasmic reticulum (RER), some Golgi apparatus, and peripheral vesicles of type B cells. On the other hand, RER and Golgi apparatus of type A cells failed to be immunostained with the antibody. Type A cells occasionally contacted each other with interdigitation of cytoplasmic processes, and a high amount of fibronectin was localized in this region. These findings indicate that fibronectin is synthesized along the classic secretory pathway through RER and Golgi apparatus of type B cells. On the contrary, type A cells seem not to be associated with the local synthesis of the glycoprotein. Fibronectin may play a structural role in organizing these proliferated lining cells by promoting cell adhesion. The synthesis of fibronectin by proliferated type B cells may be responsible in part for the local increase of this glycoprotein in the lining layer of RA synovium.

Adult↗

Characterization of the fibronectin-attachment protein of Mycobacterium avium reveals a fibronectin-binding motif conserved among mycobacteria.

Mycobacterium avium is an intracellular pathogen and a major opportunistic infectious agent observed in patients with acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS). Evidence suggests that the initial portal of infection by M. avium is often the gastrointestinal tract. However, the mechanism by which the M. avium crosses the epithelial barrier is unclear. A possible mechanism is suggested by the ability of M. avium to bind fibronectin, an extracellular matrix protein that is a virulence factor for several extracellular pathogenic bacteria which bind to mucosal surfaces. To further characterize fibronectin binding by M. avium, we have cloned the M. avium fibronectin-attachment protein (FAP). The M. avium FAP (FAP-A) has an unusually large number of Pro and Ala residues (40% overall) and is 50% identical to FAP of both Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Using recombinant FAP-A and FAP-A peptides, we show that two non-continuous regions in FAP-A bind fibronectin. Peptides from these regions and homologous sequences from M. leprae FAP inhibit fibronectin binding by both M. avium and Mycobacterium bovis Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG). These regions have no homology to eukaryotic fibronectin-binding proteins and are only distantly related to fibronectin-binding peptides of Gram-positive bacteria. Nevertheless, these fibronectin-binding regions are highly conserved among the mycobacterial FAPs, suggesting an essential function for this interaction in mycobacteria infection of their metazoan hosts.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗

Plasma fibronectin and fibronectin therapy in sepsis and critical illness.

Plasma fibronectin may be an important component of host defense in critically ill patients, particularly after trauma and during sepsis. This paper reviews recent studies that have sought to characterize the natural history of plasma fibronectin during sepsis, as well as those studies that tested the effect of therapy with concentrated fibronectin in sepsis. The decrease in plasma fibronectin that generally is seen in humans during sepsis probably is due to many factors, and it has been difficult to produce a similar pattern in animal models. Depletion of plasma fibronectin is not a sensitive or specific predictor of imminent sepsis, and once sepsis is established, the concentration of plasma fibronectin is no more sensitive a predictor of mortality than are many other clinical markers. Early, uncontrolled trials of therapy with a fibronectin concentrate in patients with sepsis appeared to indicate a propitious effect on organ function. However, more recent controlled trials have failed to show a significant effect of therapy with fibronectin concentrate on either organ function or patient survival.

Animals↗

Progestin stimulates the biosynthesis of fibronectin and accumulation of fibronectin mRNA in human endometrial stromal cells.

Fibronectin is a major component of decidual basement membrane. In the present study, we have investigated the effect of progestin on the synthesis and secretion of fibronectin in human endometrial stromal cells. Stromal cells were isolated during the menstrual cycle and cultured in RPMI-1640 with 2% fetal calf serum supplemented with progesterone or medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) in a long-term culture system. Indirect immunofluorescent staining showed that fibronectin was uniformly distributed in the intracellular and extracellular regions of stromal cells treated with MPA for 14 days. The biosynthesis and secretion of this protein and the accumulation of cellular fibronectin mRNA were studied after various culture periods. Cells were pulse-labelled with [35S]methionine to determine the amount of newly synthesized fibronectin secreted into the culture medium. A monoclonal antibody (Mab) identified human fibronectin on SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE), showing a predominant band (Mr 230-250 kDa) which migrated with authentic fibronectin run in parallel. In six endometrial specimens, the amount of radioactivity incorporated as [35S]fibronectin was increased by progestin. Maximal stimulation occurred after 6 days treatment with MPA. Culture beyond 16 days reduced the rate of synthesis and secretion to 40% of the maximum. The effect of progestin was dose dependent with 0.02, 0.2 and 1 microM progesterone, producing 2.0, 3.8 and 11-fold increases respectively, over the control. Medroxyprogesterone acetate was more effective than progesterone, the maximal response (10-fold increase) being achieved at 0.02 microM MPA.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Cells, Cultured↗

Fibronectin in an extracellular matrix of cultured endothelial cells supports platelet adhesion via its ninth type III repeat : A comparison with platelet adhesion to isolated fibronectin

We investigated the involvement of different domains of fibronectin in mediating platelet adhesion to fibronectin in the extracellular matrix (ECM) of cultured endothelial cells under flow conditions. Polyclonal anti-fibronectin antibodies were absorbed with Sepharose to which no protein, intact fibronectin, or different fibronectin fragments had been coupled to obtain supernatants (Sups) (Sup(0), Sup(FN), and Sup(name of the fragment), respectively) from which a specific part of the antibodies had been removed. Treatment of the ECM before perfusion with Sup(0) resulted in a 36% decrease in platelet coverage, whereas treatment with Sup(FN) resulted in maximal adhesion. Treatment of the ECM with supernatants from which antibodies directed against the gelatin- or heparin-binding domain had been removed showed the same inhibition as treatment with Sup(0). Removal of antibodies directed to the 120-kDa cell-binding domain resulted in a level of adhesion equal to the level found when the ECM was treated with Sup(FN). Further analysis of this central region showed that only treatment with supernatants from which antibodies directed to the ninth type III repeat (III-9) of fibronectin had been removed resulted in a significantly higher adhesion than treatment with Sup(0). Studies of adhesion to the fragments themselves showed that only fragments containing III-10 were able to support adhesion. Mutation of the Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) sequence into Arg-Gly-Glu (RGE) in one of those fragments resulted in a complete loss of adhesive capacity. These data suggest that platelet adhesion to fibronectin in the ECM depends on III-9, whereas III-10 does not seem to be required. For platelet adhesion to isolated fibronectin, an intact RGD sequence seems to be crucial.

Journal Article↗

Effect of retinyl acetate on the assembly of the fibronectin extracellular matrix and the processing of the fibronectin receptor beta subunit of confluent C3H/10T1/2 mouse embryo fibroblasts.

The mouse embryo fibroblast cell line, C3H/10T1/2, synthesized and deposited a large amount of fibronectin especially in the pericellular matrix. Confluent cultures of these cells cultured in the presence of 0.3 micrograms/ml of retinyl acetate released cell surface fibronectin and the extracellular matrix fibronectin fibrils were disorganized. The immunoblot analysis demonstrated that the number of the fibronectin receptor was decreased in the prolonged culturing of retinyl acetate-treated cells. Immunoprecipitation of 35S-methionine pulse-chase labeled cell extracts by antifibronectin receptor antibody indicated that about one-half of the pre-beta subunit was processed and converted to the mature form in control cells, and only about one-fourth of the pre-beta subunit was processed in the retinyl acetate-treated confluent cells. 1-deoxymannojirimycin (MNJ), which is an inhibitor of oligosaccharide processing, induced disorganization of the extracellular matrix fibronectin assembly similar to that observed with retinyl acetate. The results of this study suggest that a mechanism of action of retinyl acetate is inhibition of the glycosylation during processing of the fibronectin receptor, a step necessary for fibronectin binding and for assembly of the extracellular matrix.

Animals↗

Fibronectin and alpha5 integrin regulate keratinocyte cell cycling. A mechanism for increased fibronectin potentiation of T cell lymphokine-driven keratinocyte hyperproliferation in psoriasis.

In addition to being T lymphocyte-driven, psoriasis may be due in part to abnormal integrin expression. Normal-appearing (uninvolved) skin from psoriatic patients was examined to determine whether altered fibronectin or its receptor expression is detectable before development of psoriatic lesions. In contrast to skin from normal subjects, we detect by immunofluorescence the abnormal presence of plasma fibronectin in the basal cell layer of the epidermis of psoriatic uninvolved skin. Furthermore, increased fibronectin exposure superinduces the in vitro cell cycle induction and expansion of psoriatic nonlesional keratinocytes in response to a cocktail of T cell lymphokines. Fibronectin alone also appeared to increase cell cycle entry among uninvolved but not normal keratinocytes. Concordantly, the alpha5 integrin fibronectin receptor, but not alpha2 or alpha3, is overexpressed in the in vivo nonlesional psoriatic epidermis. The involvement of alpha5beta1 in the early outgrowth of clonogenic keratinocytes in the ex vivo culture was demonstrated by the ability of anti-alpha5 mAb to inhibit keratinocyte growth on fibronectin. Thus, the fibronectin receptor appears to be one of the components required for the development of the hyperresponsiveness of psoriatic keratinocytes to signals for proliferation provided by lymphokines produced by intralesional T lymphocytes in psoriasis.

Antigens, CD↗

Changes in cell surface expression of fibronectin and fibronectin receptor during liver regeneration.

The surface expression of fibronectin and its major integrin receptor in liver, integrin alpha 5 beta 1, was studied during liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy. Using immunoblotting, plasma membranes isolated from livers at different regeneration stages were found to contain 6- to 8-fold elevated levels of fibronectin, alpha 5 and beta 1 at 12-24 h after the operation. Normal levels were gradually restored during the following 8-9 days. The membrane-associated fibronectin lacked the ED-A domain, suggesting that it consisted of plasma fibronectin. A prominent fibronectin fragment (180 kDa) was present at 12-24 h after surgery, possibly reflecting turnover of the pericellular matrix during cell division. Indirect immunohistochemical staining of liver sections revealed beta 1 and fibronectin mainly in the sinusoidal region of the hepatocyte plasma membrane. The distribution was not markedly altered during liver regeneration. The results suggest that the fibronectin-mediated contacts between the cells and the extracellular matrix increase during the pre-replicative and proliferative phases of liver regeneration. The significance of these results for the growth and for the structure of the liver during regeneration and development is discussed.

Animals↗

Staphylococcus aureus fibronectin binding proteins A and B possess a second fibronectin binding region that may have biological relevance to bone tissues.

Staphylococcus aureus is a major human pathogen that has a propensity for targeting to bone tissues and thereby causing bone disease. A plausible hypothesis is that S. aureus targets to bone using the MSCRAMM family of surface proteins possessed by this organism. Two such proteins that have recently been shown to be important in bone infections are the S. aureus fibronectin binding proteins (FnBP) A and B. To identify fibronectin-binding domains from S. aureus that have biological relevance to bone, a phage display library of S. aureus genomic DNA was constructed and panned sequentially against immobilized fibronectin and cultured osteoblasts. Using this system, phage displaying a second fibronectin-binding region within the N-terminal part of FnBPA and FnBPB, which is distinct from the primary fibronectin-binding domain located within the D repeat region of these proteins, was isolated. Phage displaying this second region bound to both immobilized fibronectin and to osteoblasts and/or the extracellular matrix synthesized by these cells, thereby suggesting a biological relevance for these regions in S. aureus binding to bone tissues. Analysis of these binding regions for their ability to bind to other extracellular matrix proteins revealed a preference for fibronectin, with slight binding to fibrinogen and no binding to collagen or laminin.

Adhesins, Bacterial↗