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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

cDNA sequence of a second fibrinogen alpha chain in lamprey: an archetypal version alignable with full-length beta and gamma chains.

The message for a second fibrinogen alpha chain has been cloned from a lamprey liver cDNA library. The sequence is unique in that the amino-terminal half is homologous to all other known alpha chains, including another from lamprey, but its carboxyl-terminal half is homologous to the carboxyl-terminal portions of beta and gamma chains, segments that compose the distal globular regions of fibrinogen. The structural pattern of this newly discovered alpha chain suggests that it could be a direct descendant of the archetypal chain that existed prior to the gene duplications that led to unique beta and gamma chains and before the dislocating events that gave rise to contemporary alpha chains.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1989

Complete sequence of the lamprey fibrinogen alpha chain.

The complete amino acid sequence of the lamprey fibrinogen alpha chain has been determined by a combination of peptide sequencing and cDNA and genomic cloning. The chain, which has an apparent molecular weight by dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of ca. 100,000, is composed of 961 amino acid residues and has a calculated molecular weight of 96,722. It is distinguished by a large number of 18-residue repeats in a region where mammalian fibrinogens have 13-residue repeats. The data are in accord with our previous finding that the lamprey alpha chain has a distinctive amino acid composition, almost half the residues being glycine, serine, or threonine. The chain differs from mammalian alpha chains in that there are no cysteines in the carboxy-terminal half, and thus no intrachain loop, nor are there any RGD sequences in the lamprey alpha chain. Taken together with previous data on the sequences of the beta and gamma chains, the findings bear significantly on our understanding of fibrin formation. The alpha chain also provides an interesting case of structural convergence during evolution.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed2003

Identification of simultaneous mutation of fibrinogen alpha chain and protein C genes in a Japanese kindred.

Afibrinogenaemia usually induces a bleeding tendency during infancy, whereas protein C deficiency increases susceptibility to thrombosis in children or adolescence. Mutations of these genes have been, therefore, established as independent risk factors for coagulation disorders. We describe the homozygous mutation of the fibrinogen alpha chain gene and additional heterozygous mutation of the protein C gene in a male infant who showed prolonged umbilical bleeding after birth. On examination, the plasma fibrinogen was undetectable, and the activity and antigen level of protein C were reduced. The patient showed no fibrinogen Aalpha chain as well as Bbeta and gamma chains by Western blotting. The sequencing analysis showed the homozygous deletion of 1238 bases from intron 3 at position 2008 to intron 4 at position 3245 in the fibrinogen alpha chain gene. Both parents were heterozygous carriers of this mutation. In this patient, an additional mutation was also detected in the protein C gene: the heterozygous deletion of exon 7 at position 6161-6163 or 6164-6166, resulting the deletion of one amino acid (Lys150 or 151). His mother was also a carrier of this mutation. As the simultaneous mutation of the fibrinogen alpha chain and protein C genes has not been previously reported, the influence of the interaction between these two mutations on the clinical manifestations of this patient should be carefully monitored for a long period.

Afibrinogenemia↗
PubMed1988

Irreversible platelet fibrinogen interactions occur independently of fibrinogen alpha chain degradation and are not mediated by intact platelet membrane glycoprotein IIb-IIIa complexes.

Interactions between fibrinogen and human platelets leading to irreversible fibrinogen binding are poorly understood. Because fibrinogen possesses platelet recognition sites on both its alpha and gamma chains, the present study examined the hypothesis that irreversible platelet fibrinogen interactions occurred as a result of multivalent fibrinogen binding to platelet membrane glycoprotein IIb-IIIa complexes. Fibrinogen binding to human, gel-filtered platelets was assessed by using intact fibrinogen and a plasmic fibrinogen degradation product (8D-50) lacking intact alpha chains and resembling an intermediate fragment X. Irreversibly bound fibrinogen was defined as fibrinogen that remained associated with thrombin-stimulated platelets in the presence of 10 mmol/L ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) or excess unlabeled fibrinogen. The amount of intact fibrinogen that bound irreversibly to platelets comprised 54% +/- 12% (mean +/- SD, n = 8) of total binding. It was unaffected by fibrinogen receptor saturation and platelet alpha granule release. Similar amounts of 8D-50 (56% +/- 10%) bound irreversibly to platelets. Addition of 50 mumol/L arginine-glycine-asparagine-serine, after the initial binding of either fibrinogen or 8D-50, had no effect on the subsequent stabilization of platelet-fibrinogen or platelet-8D-50 interactions.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Blood Platelets↗
PubMed1993

Anticoagulant function of a 24-Kd fragment isolated from human fibrinogen A alpha chains.

A fibrinogen fragment obtained by limited-plasmin proteolysis has been isolated and purified to apparent homogeneity by gel filtrations. This fragment, denoted as 24-Kd fragment, has an apparent M(r) approximately 24,000 and contains an N-terminal sequence of met-glu-leu-glu-arg-pro-gly-gly-asn-glu-ile. The fragment contains a large number of acidic amino acid residues, and its amino acid composition is similar to several fibrinogen A alpha chains degradation fragments isolated previously. It corresponds to a peptide of the fibrinogen A alpha chains, the N-terminal of which starts at alpha Met-240. This peptide delays thrombin plasma clotting time. It does not bind calcium ions and does not inhibit thrombin's amidolytic activity. It binds to immobilized fibrin but not fibrinogen. It also inhibits the polymerization of desAA and desAABB fibrin monomers by simultaneously decreasing the maximum rate and the maximum level of the polymerization reaction. However, the initial lag period of this reaction is not affected by the fragment.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1994

Fib420: a normal human variant of fibrinogen with two extended alpha chains.

In fibrinogen, alpha E chains form a subpopulation of alpha subunits that are distinguished by a carboxyl extension homologous to the C termini of the other two constituent chains: beta and gamma. The molecular mass of alpha E is > 50% greater than that of the common alpha subunit, due in part to an extra 236 amino acids. These residues are encoded by exon VI, a recently discovered extension of the fibrinogen alpha gene. Additional mass is contributed by posttranslational processing, including N-glycosylation, which, based on experiments with the inhibitor tunicamycin, was found to account in large measure for alpha E migration on SDS/PAGE at approximately 110 kDa rather than at its calculated mass of 92,843 Da. An antibody specific for the exon VI-encoded domain of alpha E (anti-VI) and capable of recognizing alpha E-containing fibrinogen in both native and denatured form was generated using a recombinant protein as immunogen. Its use in Western blot analysis of fractions of normal human blood (plasma and preparations of fibrinogen) revealed a single, sharp, alpha E-containing band migrating behind the position of the broad, predominant fibrinogen band, (alpha beta gamma)2. Designation of the upper band as Fib420, an approximately 420-kDa homodimer of the formula (alpha E beta gamma)2, is based on the overwhelming proportion of alpha E subunits (> 80% of the total alpha chains) found in anti-VI-immunoprecipitable material from hepatoma cell medium. Several lines of evidence suggest that the alpha E subunit, alone or incorporated into fibrinogen, is more stable than the common alpha chain, a feature of potential clinical importance.

Animals↗
PubMed1981

Cleavage of the A alpha-chain of fibrinogen and the alpha-polymer of fibrin by the venom of spitting cobra (Naja nigricollis).

The effect of Naja nigricollis venom of fibrinogen and highly crosslinked fibrin was examined by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of the reduced products of venom treatment. The venom contains a proteolytic activity which degraded the A alpha-chain of fibrinogen, but had no apparent effect on the B beta- or gamma-chains of the molecule. The venom also readily degraded the alpha-polymer or highly crosslinked fibrin, without apparent cleavage of the beta-chain or the gamma-dimer of fibrin. The venom had no observed effect on plasminogen, indicating that the effects on the A alpha-chain and the alpha-polymer are by direct action of the venom, and not due to activation of plasminogen. The fibrinogenolysis was inhibited by EDTA or 1,10-phenanthroline. Inhibition with EDTA could be reversed by the addition of Zn2+. The fibrinogenolysis was optimal between pH 7 and 8, consistent with the expected pH optimum for a Zn2+ metalloproteinase.

Anticoagulants↗
PubMed1992

Human fibrinogen heterogeneity: the COOH-terminal residues of defective A alpha chains of fibrinogen II.

Fibrinogen fraction I (340 kDa) and fraction II (305 kDa) were isolated by glycine precipitation. The subunit chains of the two fractions were separated, after reduction, by reverse-phase high performance liquid chromatography. The amino acid compositions of the B beta and tau chains of fibrinogen II were identical with those of fibrinogen I. In contrast, the A alpha chains of fibrinogen II were composed of two populations, one comprising homogeneous, intact A alpha chains and the other consisting of heterogeneous, deficient A alpha chains (A alpha' chains) of lengths varying according to the sizes of their COOH-terminal defects. The molar ratio of the A alpha to the A alpha' chains in fibrinogen II was 1.16:1. The amino acid composition and sequence analyses of the TPCK-trypsin peptides derived from the A alpha' chains revealed that the COOH-terminal residues of the A alpha' chains were mainly Asn-269, Gly-297 and Pro-309. These results indicate that the fibrinogen II molecule is asymmetrical and can be represented by the formula (A alpha) (A alpha')(B beta)2(tau)2 and that fibrinogen II cannot be a plasmin degradation product of fibrinogen I.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1977

Amino acid sequence studies on the alpha chain of human fibrinogen. Covalent structure of the alpha-chain portion of fragment D.

The alpha-chain portion of fragment D has been purified from an exhaustive plasmic digest of human fibrinogen. The major polypeptide species has 91 amino acid residues, although a small amount of a 97-residue chain representing an earlier digestion stage remains. The amino acid sequence of the first 44 residues was determined by stepwise degradation with an automatic solid-phase sequencer. Another large stretch of sequence was revealed by the finding that the alpha chain of fragment D overlaps the cyanogen bromide fragments alphaCNIVA and alphaCNIII (Doolittle, R. F. Cassman, K. G., Cottrell, B. A., Friezner, S. J. Hucko, J. T., and Takagi, T. (1977), Biochemistry 16 (preceding paper in this issue)). The automatic sequencer results were confirmed and extended by the isolation and characterization of 18 of 19 expected tryptic peptides from the fragment D alpha chain. As a result, almost the entire sequence has been obtained. The overlap with key cyanogen bromide fragments has also allowed us to propose an order for the first 198 residues of the fibrinogen alpha chain. A striking homology with the gamma chain and beta chain is apparent which has interesting structural implications.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1993

Processing of the carboxyl 15-amino acid extension in the alpha-chain of fibrinogen.

The cDNA for the alpha-chain of human fibrinogen codes for 15 amino acids at the carboxyl terminus that are not found in the native protein circulating in plasma. In the present studies, experiments were designed to test whether the carboxyl extension was required for fibrinogen assembly or was simply the result of limited proteolysis and maturation of the protein during or following secretion. Baby hamster kidney cells were transfected with cDNAs coding for the alpha-, beta-, and gamma-chains, and the recombinant fibrinogen secreted into the cell culture medium was identified either with an antibody against the mature molecule or with an antibody directed toward the carboxyl extension of the alpha-chain. The secreted protein contained primarily two species of alpha-chains, including one with the carboxyl extension and one that was the same as that in plasma fibrinogen. A mutant fibrinogen, in which Arg-611 at the putative cleavage site in the alpha-chain was converted to Gly, was also readily assembled, and, in this case, the protein was secreted with the alpha-chain carboxyl extension. Similarly, a mutant fibrinogen that completely lacked the carboxyl extension of the alpha-chain was assembled and secreted from the transfected baby hamster kidney cells. These two mutants with modified alpha-chains were readily clotted by thrombin and cross-linked by factor XIIIa. These results indicate that the alpha-chain carboxyl extension in fibrinogen is not required for assembly or secretion of the molecule. Accordingly, it was concluded that the cleavage of the alpha-chain removing the carboxyl-terminal 15 amino acids is a normal and specific processing event occurring during the maturation of the protein.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1993

Carboxyl-terminal portions of the alpha chains of fibrinogen and fibrin. Localization by electron microscopy and the effects of isolated alpha C fragments on polymerization.

The locations of the carboxyl-terminal two thirds of the A alpha chains, or the alpha C domains, were determined for fibrinogen and some of its derivatives by electron microscopy of rotary-shadowed preparations. A monoclonal antibody, G8, to the carboxyl-terminal 150 amino acids of the A alpha chain, binds near the central region of fibrinogen, indicating that the alpha C domains of most molecules are not normally visible because they are on or near the amino-terminal disulfide knot. At pH 3.5, fibrinogen and fibrin monomers appear to be similar, with a projection terminating in a small globular domain from each end of most molecules. In contrast, fragment X monomers, produced by cleavage of the alpha C domains from fibrinogen with plasmin, show no such projections. When fibrin monomer is brought to neutral pH under conditions where polymerization is delayed, individual molecules are still visible showing the alpha C domains as a single additional nodule near the central region. Moreover, analysis of clusters of molecules reveals some intermolecular associations via the alpha C domains. A 40-kDa fragment comprising the alpha C domain has been isolated from a plasmin digest of fibrinogen and characterized by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and determination of amino-terminal amino acid sequences. Electron microscopy of alpha C fragments reveals individual globular structures, as well as oligomeric aggregates. The addition of alpha C fragments to fibrin monomer followed by dilution to neutral pH to initiate polymerization results in lower turbidity, longer lag period, and slower maximum rate of turbidity increase. Also, electron microscopy reveals complexes of alpha C fragments with fibrin monomer at neutral pH. It appears that the free alpha C fragments can bind to the alpha C domains of fibrin, competing with the normal alpha C domain interactions involved in polymerization.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1977

Amino acid sequence studies on the alpha chain of human fibrinogen. Isolation and characterization of two linked alpha-chained cyanogen bromide fragments from fully cross-linked fibrin.

Fully cross-linked human fibrin was digested with cyanogen bromide and the resulting fragments were characterized and compared with the fragments produced upon cyanogen bromide treatment of fibrinogen alpha chains. The largest molecular-weight fraction isolated by gel filtration on Sephadex G-150 was reduced and alkylated, and upon rechromatography on Sephadex G-150 it eluted at the same place as the original material. This large molecular weight fraction was subjected to amino acid analysis and the amino-terminal sequences of its constituent chains were determined by both dimethylaminonaphthyl sulfonation (Dns) and thioacetylation procedures. The identified sequences corresponded to two cyanogen bromide fragments previously found in alpha chains isolated from fibrinogen, one of which has a molecular weight of about 30 000 and the other 6000. The latter is thought to be the carboxy-terminal penultimate cyanogen bromide fragment of the alpha chain.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1984

The platelet-fibrinogen interaction. Evidence for proximity of the A alpha chain of fibrinogen to platelet membrane glycoproteins IIb/III.

Fibrinogen participates in platelet aggregation via specific inducible receptors on the cell surface. We have used a photoactivable bifunctional reagent, N-succinimidyl-6-(4'-azido-2'-nitrophenylamino)hexanoate, SANAH, to derivatize 125I-labeled-fibrinogen (125I-Fg) and crosslink it to ADP-stimulated platelets. Binding experiments established that 125I-Fg and 125I-Fg-SANAH interacted with platelets with the same kinetics and affinity as unlabeled fibrinogen. After photoactivation of the platelet-bound 125I-Fg-SANAH, polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis under reducing conditions revealed formation of a high molecular weight covalent complex with coordinate loss of the A alpha chain. 125I-Fg-SANAH missing the extreme carboxy-terminal region of the A alpha chain failed to crosslink to the platelets under similar conditions. Crosslinked 125I-Fg-SANAH was extracted from the cells in 1% Triton X-100, and immunoprecipitation with antibodies specific for platelet membrane glycoproteins was used to identify components of the complex. With antibodies to the glycoprotein IIb/III complex (anti-GP IIb/III), 40 +/- 9% of the extracted 125I-Fg-SANAH was immunoprecipitated. Omission of photoactivation, platelets, or ADP from the reaction or use of unmodified 125I-Fg resulted in less than 5% immunoprecipitation by the anti-GP IIb/III. As controls for specificity, anti-(glycoprotein Ib) or anti-IgG immunoprecipitated less than 5% of the extracted 125I-Fg-SANAH. Under similar conditions, 45% of the GP IIb/III from surface-labeled platelets was recovered in the anti-GP IIb/III immunoprecipitate. These results indicate that the A alpha chain of fibrinogen comes in close proximity to GP IIb/III when the molecule is bound to its platelet receptor.

Azides↗
PubMed1984

Conformation of the carboxy-terminal region of the A alpha chain of fibrinogen as elucidated by immunochemical analyses.

The conformation of the carboxy-terminal aspects of the A alpha chain of human fibrinogen has been assessed by immunochemically characterizing the A alpha 239-476 and A alpha 518-584 regions of the molecule. Two peptides, corresponding to these regions, were isolated from cyanogen bromide digests of the A alpha chain by molecular exclusion and high-performance liquid chromatography. Each peptide reacted with antibodies elicited by immunization with the A alpha chain and intact fibrinogen. A alpha 239-476 appears to be a relatively immunodominant region of the molecule. Competitive inhibition analyses confirmed the accessibility of these regions to antibody in native fibrinogen. Each peptide, however, contained one or more epitopes, which was occult in the native molecule. These occult epitopes were expressed by the intact A alpha chain and became accessible when fibrinogen was cleaved with plasmin. With plasmic degradation the epitopes expressed by fibrinogen and contained within these two peptide regions became significantly more reactive with antibody. This change occurred in concert with release of the A alpha 518-584 region from the core of the molecule but did not require the generation of free A alpha 239-476. Ultimately the epitopes within both regions were shed from the plasmin-resistant core of fibrinogen. Peptide epitopes were expressed in a similar manner by prolonged plasmic degradation of fibrinogen and fibrin with alpha chain cross-linking. These results are generally consistent with models depicting the carboxy-terminal aspects of the A alpha chain as being surface-oriented but suggest a systematic ordering of structure when these regions are integrated into the native molecule. Plasmic cleavage significantly relaxes the conformational restraints on the organization within this region.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1996

A frame shift mutation in the fibrinogen A alpha chain gene in a kindred with renal amyloidosis.

A new American kindred with amyloidosis was found by single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis to have a mutation in the fibrinogen A alpha chain gene. Affected members in this kindred have autosomal dominant amyloid nephropathy. DNA sequencing showed a single nucleotide deletion at the third base of codon 524 of the fibrinogen A alpha chain genes (4904delG) that resulted in a frame shift and premature termination of the protein at codon 548. Antiserum was produced to a portion of the abnormal peptide predicted by the DNA sequence and amyloid deposits were immuno-histologically proven to contain this abnormal peptide. Two of the propositus' 4 children were positive for the mutant fibrinogen A alpha chain gene by restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis based on polymerase chain reaction. These two mutant gene carriers now in the second decade of life show no clinical symptoms of amyloidosis as yet but have lower plasma fibrinogen concentrations when compared with their normal siblings. This the first description of a kindred with renal amyloidosis and low plasma fibrinogen and also the first report of amyloidosis caused by a frame shift mutation.

Adult↗
PubMed1993

Hereditary renal amyloidosis associated with a mutant fibrinogen alpha-chain.

Three members of a family who died with renal amyloidosis were found to share a single nucleotide substitution in the fibrinogen alpha-chain gene. The predicted arginine to leucine mutation (Arg554Leu) was proven by amino acid sequence analysis of amyloid fibril protein isolated from postmortem kidney of an affected individual. Direct genomic DNA sequencing and restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis demonstrated that all three affected individuals had the guanine to thymine 4993 transversion. This is the first demonstration of hereditary amyloidosis associated with a variant fibrinogen alpha-chain. Variants of circulating fibrinogen may be the cause of a number of systemic amyloidoses with primarily renal involvement.

Adult↗