ABSTRACT
Affinity of plasminogen fragments K1, K2-3, K4 and K5 for 6-aminophenyl-Sepharose was investigated to characterize the lysine-binding sites of the protein. K1 and K5 fragments were bound to the affinity column, whereas kringle 2-3 and kringle 4 were not. The results obtained and data known from literature have indicate that two types of lysine-binding sites are present in the plasminogen molecule. Both positively and negatively charged groups of the ligand are necessary for binding with the first-type sites (K4 and K2-3). The interaction between ligands and the second-type sites localized in kringles 1 and 5 is provided by their positively charged group only.
Subject(s)
Kininogens/metabolism , Lysine/metabolism , Binding Sites , Chromatography, Affinity , Humans , Peptide Fragments/metabolism , Protein ConformationABSTRACT
The intramolecular melting of the human Lys-plasminogen and its different fragments were studied by the differential scanning microcalorimetry method. Thermodynamical analysis of melting curves showed that the Lys-plasminogen molecule consists of 7 domains. Five of them are formed by five homologeus regions of the polypeptide chain (kringle), while two domains are formed by the part of the polypeptide chain corresponding to the plasmin light chain. The domains included in the fragments seem to be rather independent, since fragmentation does not lead to noticeable changes of their stability in comparison to that of the intact molecule. It has been shown also that plasminogen-plasmin conversion is accompanied by structural transformation of the molecule which results in the destabilization of one of the light chain domains.