Transglutaminase-Catalyzed Crosslinking of the Aα and γ Constituent Chains in Fibrinogen

• Published in: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS Vol. 97; no. 1; pp. 44 - 48
• Main Authors: S. N. Prasanna Murthy, Wilson, James H., Lukas, Thomas J., Veklich, Yuri, Weisel, John W., Lorand, Laszlo
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 04.01.2000; National Acad Sciences; The National Academy of Sciences
• Subjects: Amino acids; Biochemistry; Biological Sciences; Clotting; Crosslinking; Dimers; Electrophoresis; Gels; Molecular chains; Molecules; Monomers
• ISSN: 0027-8424; 1091-6490
• DOI: 10.1073/pnas.97.1.44

Studies on transglutaminases usually focus on the polymerization of protein substrates by intermolecular Nε(γ -glutamyl) lysine bridges, without considering the possibility that the monomeric protein units, themselves, could also become crosslinked internally. Both types of crosslinks are produced in the reaction of fibrinogen with red cell transglutaminase. We isolated the transglutaminase-modified, mostly monomeric form (92-96%) of fibrinogen with a Nε(γ -glutamyl) lysine content of ≈ 1.6 moles/mole of fibrinogen. The preparation was fully clottable by thrombin, but the rates of release of fibrinopeptides and clotting times were delayed compared with control. Hybrid Aα · γ type of crosslinking, the hallmark of the reaction of the transglutaminase with fibrinogen, occurred by bridging the Aα (408-421) chain segment of the protein to that of γ (392-406). Rotary shadowed electron microscope images showed many monomers to be bent, and the crosslinks seemed to bind the otherwise flexible α C domain closer to the backbone of fibrinogen.