CULTURED HUMAN-ENDOTHELIAL CELLS SYNTHESIZE A PLASMA-MEMBRANE PROTEIN COMPLEX IMMUNOLOGICALLY RELATED TO THE PLATELET GLYCOPROTEIN IIB/IIIA COMPLEX

  • 1 April 1986
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 67  (4) , 1176-1180
Abstract
We have previously demonstrated that endothelial cells synthesize a plasma membrane protein indistinguishable from platelet glycoprotein (GP) IIa. The present study provides evidence for a further analogy between the platelet and the endothelial cell membrane by showing that cultured endothelial cells also synthesize a membrane protein complex immunologically related to the platelet GP IIb/GP IIIa complex. This evidence is based on the following observations: (1)C17, a murine monoclonal antiplatelet GP IIIa antibody, consistently precipitates two proteins, apparent molecular weights, respectively, 115,000 and 125,000 reduced and 95,000 and 135,000 nonreduced, from metabolically (35S-methionine) as well as surface 125I-labeled cultured human endothelial cells; (2) upon crossed immunoelectrophoresis of solubilized endothelial cells against a polyclonal rabbit antiplatelet antiserum and 125I-labeled C17 IgG, a single precipitate of the protein(s) recognized by C17 is observed. As judged by their mobility in 9% polyacrylamide gels, both endothelial proteins appear to have a somewhat large molecular weight than their platlet counterparts. Patterns obtained by crossed immunoelectrophoresis are also indicative of a difference in electrophoretic behavior of the platelet GP IIb/IIIa complex and the endothelial cell protein complex.