4-Ammonio-benzamidinium dichloride.

The crystal structure of the title compound, C(7)H(11)N(3) (2+)·2Cl(-), has been determined as part of a project focusing on the ability of the benzamidine system to form strong hydrogen bonds in aqueous media. It is commonly used as a ligand in affinity chromatography for purification and immobilization of enzymes. A twofold rotation axis runs along the axis of the cation. The orientation of the amidinium group with respect to the benzene ring is indicated by the N-C-C-C torsion angle of 40.2 (1)°. In the crystal structure, cations and anions are linked via hydrogen bonds. The chloride anion is surrounded by four ammonium cations in a tetra-hedral environment. The aromatic rings of the amidinium cations are π-stacked, with a centroid-centroid distance of 4.178 (1) Å.

Thrombospondin modulates human breast adenocarcinoma cell adhesion to human vascular endothelial cells.

Thrombospondin (TSP), a M(r) 450,000 cytoadhesive glycoprotein, has been shown to potentiate tumor cell metastasis in mice by a mechanism that involves the hemostatic system of the host. In this study, the potential involvement of TSP in the interaction of human mammary adenocarcinoma MCF-7 cells with human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) in culture was investigated. Using an ELISA, preconfluent HUVECs synthesized 100-fold more TSP than did MCF-7 cells during 24 h of culture (20 versus 0.2 microgram/10(6) cells). Confocal microscopy localized TSP within intercellular junctions between aggregated MCF-7 cells in suspension. On adherent cells, TSP exhibited a patchy distribution both on the cell surface and in the cytosol. In HUVECs, TSP strongly stained the perinuclear space and was also found in association with cytoskeletal microfibrils. Flow cytometric analysis indicated the presence of a large number of unoccupied receptors for TSP on MCF-7 cells. Binding studies using [125I]TSP demonstrated the presence of 1.6 x 10(6) sites/cell with an apparent Kd of 28 nM. Attachment of radiolabeled MCF-7 cells to a TSP-coated substrate and to HUVEC monolayers was inhibited in the presence of a polyclonal antibody to TSP (10 micrograms/ml) or increasing concentrations (1-10 micrograms/ml) of soluble TSP. Neither nonimmune IgG nor the cell adhesion peptide Gly-Arg-Gly-Asp-Ser (100 micrograms/ml) inhibited these interactions. Inhibition was also observed with heparin (10 micrograms/ml), suggesting the participation of TSP heparin-binding domain(s) and heparin-like molecules. In the presence of an excess of soluble TSP or anti-TSP antibody, MCF-7 cells did not form aggregates in suspension and preformed aggregates were readily dissociated by the addition of soluble TSP. These results indicate that mammary adenocarcinoma cells use TSP to form aggregates and to attach to human endothelial cells. These interactions may have physiological implications during the hematogenous spread of tumor cells.

Upregulation of MMP-9 expression in MDA-MB231 tumor cells by platelet granular membrane.

The interaction between tumor cells and platelets facilitates the formation of metastasis in a way depending on the platelet aggregating ability of the tumor cell, but the mechanism remains to be elucidated. We have shown, by zymography and Western blot, that platelets greatly increased the secretion to the culture medium of MMP-9 by human mammary tumor cells MDA-MB231. This increase, which was dependent on protein synthesis, was caused by the platelet aggregates interacting with the tumor cells and not by the soluble factors released during platelet activation. Platelet subcellular fractionation allowed the localization of the inducing factor to the membrane fraction of the platelet granules, thus requiring platelet aggregation in order to become accessible on the platelet surface.

The extracellular matrix produced by bovine corneal endothelial cells contains progelatinase A.

Progelatinase A is a matrix metalloproteinase involved in the turnover of extracellular matrix (ECM). We report that the ECM produced by bovine corneal endothelial (BCE) cells contains progelatinase A free of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP2). The matrix-bound progelatinase A can be activated by APMA to generate a 62 kDa and a 45 kDa species with enzymatic activity and is inhibited by TIMP2. The bound progelatinase can be released after treatment of the ECM with gelatinase B. These studies suggest that the ECM can function as a reservoir for progelatinase A which may be readily available for cells in processes such as metastasis, angiogenesis, inflammation and wound healing.

Characterization of a novel monoclonal antibody (V58A4) raised against a recombinant NH2-terminal heparin-binding fragment of human endothelial cell thrombospondin.

We report herein the characterization of a mouse monoclonal antibody (Mab) raised against the recombinant NH2-terminal heparin-binding domain (rHBD) of human endothelial cell thrombospondin (TSP). The antibody, a IgG1 (kappa), hereafter referred to as V58A4, reacted with two rHBD, TSPN18 and TSPN28 (i.e. 18 kDa and 28 kDa, respectively) with an affinity constant of 1.33 x 10(-8) M. However, V58A4 failed to recognize native or deglycosylated forms of TSP purified from platelets or endothelial cells, as well as a 25-30 kDa HBD fragment produced by limited proteolysis of native TSP. In contrast, Mab V58A4 was shown to react with larger HBD fragments (50-60 kDa) that were present in platelet or endothelial cell extracts and could be retained on a heparin-Sepharose column at low salt concentrations. These fragments also reacted with MA-II, a mouse Mab (IgG1), which recognizes both rHBD and HBD as well as intact TSP. Thus, V58A4 Mab appears to selectively recognize naturally occurring HBD fragments of TSP and may thus prove to be useful for detecting TSP proteolysis in situ under various physiopathological conditions.

Blockage of the urokinase receptor on the cell surface: construction and characterization of a hybrid protein consisting of the N-terminal fragment of human urokinase and human albumin.

Receptor-bound urokinase is likely to be a crucial determinant in both tumor invasion and angiogenesis. We report here that a yeast-derived genetic conjugate between human serum albumin and the 1-135 N-terminal residues of urokinase (u-PA) competitively inhibits the binding of exogenous and endogenous u-PA to its cell-anchored receptor (u-PAR). This hybrid molecule (ATF-HSA) also inhibits in vitro pro-urokinase-dependent plasminogen activation in the presence of u-PAR bearing cells. These effects are probably responsible for the observed in vitro inhibition of tumor cell invasion in a reconstituted basement membrane extract (Matrigel).

Blockage of urokinase receptor reduces in vitro the motility and the deformability of endothelial cells.

The binding of urokinase (u-PA) to its cell surface receptor (u-PAR) is critical for tumor cell invasion. Here, we report that the distribution of this binding by a u-PAR antagonist ATF-HSA inhibits in vitro the motility of endothelial cells in a dose-dependent manner. This inhibition was also observed when the cells were first stimulated with potent angiogenic factors, including bFGF or VEGF. [3H]thymidine incorporation assay demonstrated that ATF-HSA did not affect the cell proliferation. ATF-HSA was more potent than plasmin inhibitors, suggesting that it exerts its effects not solely by inhibiting the remodeling of the extracellular matrix. In fact, analysis of the cell shape change during migration revealed for the first time that its effect is related to a decrease in cell deformability. These results suggest that u-PAR antagonist may be a new approach to control angiogenesis.

Hyaluronectin blocks the stimulatory effect of hyaluronan-derived fragments on endothelial cells during angiogenesis in vitro.

Hyaluronic acid (HA) is a glycosaminoglycan of the extracellular matrix. Its fragmentation by the hyaluronidase, secreted by tumor cells, facilitates tumor invasion and the HA degradation products generated stimulate angiogenesis. We report here that the HA-binding protein hyaluronectin (HN) inhibits the stimulatory effect of HA-derived fragments on the proliferation and migration of endothelial cells in vitro, and hampers the organization of endothelial cells into capillary-like structures. Since HN strongly inhibits endothelial cell adhesion to immobilized HA, it is postulated that HN acts by impairing the binding to endothelial cells of HA fragments generated by hyaluronidase, thereby neutralizing the effect of HA degradation products on angiogenesis. Our results reveal a new mechanism by which the angiogenesis induced by HA fragments is modulated by HN.

Thrombospondin: a component of microfibrils in various tissues.

We used antisera directed against human platelet thrombospondin (TSP) and microfibril-associated GP 128 to localize the presence of these glycoproteins in fixed sections of human placenta or porcine arteries and skin by immunogold labeling, using electron microscopy. These two antibodies reacted with both human and porcine tissues and always recognized the same structures. In all three tissues the antibodies were associated with the basement membranes and, more precisely, with the microfibrillar structures present at the junction between the basement membrane and the adjacent connective tissue. This localization indicates that GP 128 and TSP are associated with the microfibrils, and suggests their possible role in the attachment of basement membrane to the connective tissue meshwork. Their presence in microfibrils associated with the subendothelial basement membrane in arteries may be important in regard to the thrombogenicity of the subendothelium since, after an endothelial lesion, they may be directly accessible to blood platelets.

Histochemical and ultrastructural characterization of subendothelial glycoprotein microfibrils interacting with platelets.

The interaction of human blood platelets with collagenase-treated rabbit subendothelium was studied by histochemical ultrastructural methods and by morphometric semi-quantitative analysis. Aortas were deendothelialized and incubated: 1) with a highly purified bacterial collagenase whose specificity was controlled; and 2) with the same collagenase followed by chymotrypsin. For histochemical studies, tannic acid, ruthenium red, and peroxidase-labeled Ricinus communis and concanavalin A were used. Electron microscopy showed that after digestion of fibrillar collagen by collagenase, adherent and aggregated platelets were observed on Ricinus communis-, concanavalin A-, and ruthenium red-positive glycoprotein microfibrils. After successive incubation with collagenase and chymotrypsin, the microfibrils disappeared. No platelets were observed on the remnant amorphous elastin. Morphometric analysis confirmed the interaction of platelets with collagenase-treated subendothelium. In addition, glycoproteins were extracted from collagenase-treated rabbit aortas using 5 M guanidine. Using an in vitro quantitative test, significant platelet adhesion to these glycoproteins was observed. Our results show an interaction between platelets and noncollagenic glycoprotein microfibrils.

Binding of plasma von Willebrand factor by arterial microfibrils.

We developed an ELISA test to measure the binding of plasma von Willebrand factor (vWF) to arterial microfibrils and compared this interaction to the binding of vWF to collagen under the same conditions. We found that vWF binds to microfibrils in a similar manner as it binds to collagen: the binding was independent of the presence of cations, and temperature of incubation and was displaced by 1 M NaCl. Using purified 125I-vWF we showed that the binding was saturable and could be displaced by cold vWF in excess. Using immunoblotting we showed that vWF binds to a 97 kDa protein present in the microfibrils different from the 128 kDa thrombospondin-like structure (GP 128) which in microfibrils is known to interact with blood platelets. These results indicate that in the subendothelium, microfibrils bind plasma vWF and this reinforces the thrombogenic role of these structures.

Modulation of endothelial cells fibrinolytic activity by platelets.

Interaction between endothelial cells (EC) and platelets in culture was shown to regulate the fibrinolytic system of the aortic EC. Untreated porcine EC from aorta exhibited almost no net fibrinolytic activity and zymographic assay have shown a single fibrin lysis band of 105 kDa corresponding to a tPA-PAI complex. Incubation of aortic EC with intact platelets stimulated a cell-associated fibrinolytic activity of the urokinase type as evidenced by a plasminogen-dependent fibrin independent amidolytic activity, and the appearance of a new 48 kDa lysis band on zymography. However, in the culture medium of platelet-treated aortic EC, a new lysis band of 92 kDa appeared with no associated amidolytic activity suggesting that the 48 kDa plasminogen activator secreted by the aortic EC after treatment with platelets is complexed to the inhibitor PAI1. This modulation of fibrinolytic activity depends on the EC origin since it is not observed with pulmonary artery EC, and represents a new concept in fibrinolysis regulation by cell-cell interaction.

Hemostasis in patients undergoing extracorporeal circulation: the effect of aprotinin (Trasylol).

The administration of aprotinin during extracorporeal circulation (ECC) reduces blood loss. To explore the mechanism of this effect, a placebo-controlled double-blind study was performed in 20 patients (10 were administered with a high dose of aprotinin, 10 with placebo) undergoing a primary, elective operation of coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) with ECC. Biological tests were performed at 4 different time points during the operation. A marked reduction in the placebo group of ristocetin-induced platelet agglutination (binding of von Willebrand factor [vWF] to platelet glycoprotein [GP] Ib) was shown during ECC and at the end of surgery, but not in the aprotinin group. This abnormality is not related to the hydrolysis of vWF or GP Ib, since washed platelets were resuspended in pooled normal plasma which provided a constant amount of vWF in this test and since the plasma concentration of the fragment of GP Ib (glycocalicin) did not correlate with this abnormality. Despite a high concentration of heparin (5-7 IU/ml) in patient's plasma during bypass, activation of blood coagulation in both groups was evidenced by an increase in ATm (thrombin-modified antithrombin III) level. The level of ATm in the placebo group reached a maximum at the end of ECC during rewarming, while in the aprotinin group, ATm level at this time point was significantly lower than in the control group. In comparison to the placebo group, the generation of the fibrin degradation products (DDE complexes) was inhibited by aprotinin during ECC, but the level of DDE complexes in the aprotinin group was slightly elevated after ECC, although much less than in the placebo group.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Vascular origin determines angiotensin I-converting enzyme expression in endothelial cells.

Previous observations on the heterogeneous distribution of von Willebrand factor in the vascular endothelium led us to examine the expression of angiotensin I-converting enzyme (ACE) in function of the vascular origin of endothelial cells (EC). EC from pig thoracic aorta, pulmonary artery, inferior vena cava and brain capillaries were cultured and assayed for ACE by enzymatic radiochemical determination and by western-blot and immunofluorescence using an antiACE polyclonal antibody. EC from the various vascular levels secreted ACE in the culture medium; western-blot analysis showed its presence at cellular level and immunofluorescence confirmed its location on the plasma membrane. But quantification revealed that EC from pulmonary artery contain more ACE than EC from the other vessels, especially from brain capillaries; immunofluorescence correlated well with the functional data. In contrast, secretion of ACE by brain capillaries EC was faster than that of arteries and of vena cava, the latter being the less effective. This differential ACE expression along the vascular tree could have a pharmacological implication since ACE inhibitors, used in the treatment of arterial hypertension, may act more at the vascular level than on the plasma renin-angiotensin system. On the other hand, endothelial distribution of ACE was different from that of von Willebrand factor; in particular we showed that EC cultured from vessels of pigs homozygous for the von Willebrand disease, in which von Willebrand factor synthesis was completely abolished, normally express ACE.

Immunochemical identification of a thrombospondin-like structure in an arterial microfibrillar extract.

Arterial microfibrils contain a 128 Kd collagenase and pepsin resistant glycoprotein (GP 128) essential for their ability to induce platelet aggregation. A previous report (Fauvel F. et al, (1984) Biochem. Biophys. Res. Comm., 123, 114-120) showed that GP 128 and thrombospondin (TSP) synthetized by endothelial cells each inhibited the aggregation of platelets by microfibrils and not by collagen. We used a monospecific antiplatelet TSP IgG in an immunoblotting assay for the identification of a TSP-like structure in untreated, collagenase-treated and pepsin-treated arterial microfibrils. The only constituent recognized in the three samples of microfibrils was GP 128. Fab fragments of this IgG provoked a dose dependent inhibition of the microfibril induced platelet aggregation (50% inhibition with 0.25 mg, 100% inhibition with 1 mg); in contrast, they did not affect collagen induced aggregation. The results indicate that a glycoprotein constituent with a thrombospondin-like antigenicity is involved in the thrombogenic properties of arterial microfibrils.

Elastase-like activity in cultured aortic endothelial cells.

Cultured porcine aortic endothelial cells were studied for cellular and secreted elastase activity. We describe an activity hydrolyzing the synthetic elastase substrate, succinyl(alanine)3 nitroanilide, but not elastin, which was shown to be membrane located and was not secreted to the culture medium. A different neutral proteinase activity degrading insoluble elastin was demonstrated in the culture medium following its fractionation by gel filtration high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Since no elastinolytic activity could be directly detected in the conditioned medium, it is likely that the chromatographic separation removed an endogenous inhibitor.

Spectrophotometric evaluation of the adhesion of blood platelets to collagen and microfibrils.

We present an easy method in which the adhesion of platelets to collagen or to MFs was measured in a spectrophotometer, after an incubation of hypercitrated platelet rich plasma (PRP), or of a platelet suspension, with an inducer, followed by the filtration of non adhering platelets through translucent Isopore membrane filters (pore diameter = 5 microns). The adhering platelets, which are retained on the filter, were stained by Coomassie blue to quantify the adhesion by the simple reading of the O.D. 580 nm of the stained platelets which appear as a blue spot on the translucent membranes.

Effect of a collagen derived octapeptide on different steps of the platelet/collagen interaction.

The interaction of platelets with collagen involves short aminoacid sequences which recur along the fibres. Platelet aggregation by collagen and serotonin release is inhibited by a synthetic octapeptide LYS-PRO-GLY-GLU- PRO-GLY-PRO-LYS- derived from type III collagen. In contrast, this octapeptide inhibits only weakly the retention of platelets labelled with 111Indium to collagen, suggesting that it has a limited effect on platelet adhesion. Preincubation of the octapeptide with platelets inhibits the rise of cAMP level caused by activating adenylate cyclase by various concentrations of PGI2. The octapeptide at 5 mM reverses the inhibition by PGI2 of the adhesion of platelets to collagen. These results suggest that the octapeptide affects the intrinsic activity (manifested as platelet aggregation and secretion) more than the recognition of collagen by its receptor (manifested by adhesion).

Fibrinolysis potentiating activity following endothelial cells-platelet interaction.

When porcine endothelial cells in culture are incubated in the presence of human platelets, a 90kDa neutral proteinase activity is generated on casein gel (PECAP-Platelet Endothelial Cell Activated Protease). This activity was undetected when platelet extract or serum free EC conditioned medium were analysed under similar conditions. The optimum pH, isoelectric point, molecular weight and inhibitory profile of this activity were similar to Glu-plasmin. However, the low plasminogen content (less than 50ng/ml) in the conditioned medium of endothelial cells incubated with platelet could not contribute alone to this activity and the presence of a plasmin potentiating factor was suggested. This factor was separated from plasminogen by lysine-Sepharose chromatography.

Collagen derived octapeptide inhibits platelet procoagulant activity induced by the combined action of collagen and thrombin.

Platelet prothrombin converting activity was measured in a system using washed human platelets and purified coagulation factors Xa, Va and prothrombin. Exposure of platelet prothrombin converting activity evoked by collagen or the combined action of collagen and thrombin was effectively inhibited when a collagen derived octapeptide was added prior to platelet activation. Half maximal inhibition of prothrombinase activity of platelets stimulated by collagen plus thrombin- or collagen alone was obtained at 0.9 mM and 0.5 mM octapeptide, respectively. This suggests a modifying effect of thrombin on the platelet-collagen interaction. Octapeptide either alone or in combination with thrombin was unable to enhance platelet procoagulant activity. The increased prothrombin converting activity seen upon treatment of platelets with ionophore A23187 was not affected by octapeptide, added either before or after treatment with ionophore. It is concluded that octapeptide specifically interferes with the platelet-collagen interaction required to generate a procoagulant surface which enhances the rate of thrombin formation.