ABSTRACT
Urokinase-activated human plasma was analysed by acetic acid/urea/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis. The bands representing plasminogen, the plasmin-alpha 2-plasmin inhibitor and plasmin-alpha 2-macroglobulin complexes were identified by immunoprecipitation with specific antibodies and by comparison with purified components. Plasminogen and the plasmin-inhibitor complexes were isolated from plasma or thrombin-clotted plasma containing 125I-labelled Glu-plasminogen (residues 1-790) and urokinase. The plasma was kept at 37 degrees C for 0.5 and 10 times the lysis time of the clotted plasma, the clotted plasma until lysis. The plasmin heavy chain from the plasmin-inhibitor complexes was subsequently prepared. Only in one case could a low-grade proteolytic conversion of Glu- forms into Lys/Met/Val-forms (residues 77-790, 68-790 and 78-790 respectively) during the preparations be detected. Sodium dodecyl sulphate/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis and N-terminal sequence analysis of the purified plasminogen and plasmin heavy chain showed the following. The plasminogen in plasma was on the Glu- form. Glu-plasmin constituted 0.74 and 0.58 of the plasmin bound to the alpha 2-plasmin inhibitor in plasma after brief and prolonged activation respectively. The rest was Lys/Met/Val-plasmin. The clotted plasma contained about equal amounts of Glu-plasminogen and Lys/Met/Val-plasminogen, and predominantly Lys/Met/Val-plasmin complexed to alpha 2-plasmin inhibitor and alpha 2-macroglobulin. The results of the analysis of the purified material substantiated the identity of radioactive protein bands in the gel after acetic acid/urea/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis.
Subject(s)
Antifibrinolytic Agents/metabolism , Fibrinolysin/metabolism , Plasminogen/metabolism , Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator/pharmacology , alpha-2-Antiplasmin , Amino Acid Sequence , Antifibrinolytic Agents/immunology , Chemical Precipitation , Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel , Fibrinolysin/immunology , Humans , Macromolecular Substances , Thermolysin/blood , alpha-Macroglobulins/bloodABSTRACT
The pathway of plasminogen transformation was studied in plasma, particularly in relation to fibrin formation and the subsequent stimulation of plasminogen activation. Plasminogen was activated by urokinase (low fibrin-affinity) or tissue-type plasminogen activator (high fibrin-affinity). Formation of 125I-labelled free and inhibitor-bound plasminogen derivatives was quantified after their separation by acetic acid/urea/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis. In plasma activator converted Glu-plasminogen (residues 1-790) into Glu-plasmin, which was complexed to alpha 2-plasmin inhibitor. When this inhibitor was saturated, Glu-plasmin was autocatalytically converted into Lys-plasmin (residues 77-790). No plasmin-catalysed Lys-plasminogen formation was observed. Upon fibrin formation, activation initially followed the same Glu-plasminogen-into-Glu-plasmin conversion pathway, and stimulation of plasminogen activation was only observed with tissue-type plasminogen activator. In agreement with the emergence of novel effector function, on early plasmin cleavage of fibrin [Suenson, Lützen & Thorsen (1984) Eur. J. Biochem. 140, 513-522] the fibrin-binding of Glu-plasminogen increased when solid-phase fibrin showed evident signs of degradation. This was associated with the formation of considerable amounts of the more easily activatable Lys-plasminogen, most of which was fibrin-bound. At the same time the rate of plasmin formation with urokinase increased over that in unclotted plasma and the rate of plasmin formation with tissue-type plasminogen activator accelerated. Altogether these processes favoured enhanced fibrin degradation. The rates of Lys-plasminogen and plasmin formation abruptly decreased after lysis of fibrin, probably owing to a compromised effector function on further fibrin degradation.