A new thrombomodulin‐related coagulopathy Rehill, Aisling M.; Preston, Roger J. S.
Journal of thrombosis and haemostasis,
September 2020, 2020-09-00, 20200901, Letnik:
18, Številka:
9
Journal Article
Enhanced von Willebrand factor (VWF) clearance is important in the etiology of von Willebrand disease. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying VWF clearance remain poorly understood. In this ...study, we investigated the role of VWF domains and specific glycan moieties in regulating in vivo clearance. Our findings demonstrate that the A1 domain of VWF contains a receptor-recognition site that plays a key role in regulating the interaction of VWF with macrophages. In A1-A2-A3 and full-length VWF, this macrophage-binding site is cryptic but becomes exposed following exposure to shear or ristocetin. Previous studies have demonstrated that the N-linked glycans within the A2 domain play an important role in modulating susceptibility to ADAMTS13 proteolysis. We further demonstrate that these glycans presented at N1515 and N1574 also play a critical role in protecting VWF against macrophage binding and clearance. Indeed, loss of the N-glycan at N1515 resulted in markedly enhanced VWF clearance that was significantly faster than that observed with any previously described VWF mutations. In addition, A1-A2-A3 fragments containing the N1515Q or N1574Q substitutions also demonstrated significantly enhanced clearance. Importantly, clodronate-induced macrophage depletion significantly attenuated the increased clearance observed with N1515Q and N1574Q in both full-length VWF and A1-A2-A3. Finally, we further demonstrate that loss of these N-linked glycans does not enhance clearance in VWF in the presence of a structurally constrained A2 domain. Collectively, these novel findings support the hypothesis that conformation of the VWF A domains plays a critical role in modulating macrophage-mediated clearance of VWF in vivo.
•The A1 domain of VWF contains a cryptic binding site that plays a key role in regulating macrophage binding and clearance.•The N-linked glycans presented at N1515 and N1574 within the A2 domain of VWF modulate macrophage-mediated clearance.
Platelet-von Willebrand factor (VWF) is stored within α-granules and accounts for ∼20% of total VWF in platelet-rich plasma. This platelet-VWF pool is distinct from plasma-VWF and is enriched in high ...molecular weight multimers (HMWM). Previous studies have described significant functional discrepancies between platelet-VWF and plasma-VWF; however, the molecular basis of these differences is not well understood. We have characterized terminal glycan expression on platelet-VWF. Our findings demonstrate that platelet-VWF exists as a distinct natural glycoform. In particular, N-linked sialylation is markedly reduced (>50%) compared with plasma-VWF. Moreover, unlike plasma-VWF, platelet-VWF does not express AB blood group determinants, although precursor H antigen expression is similar to that on plasma-VWF. Because of this differential glycosylation, platelet-VWF exhibits specific resistance to ADAMTS13 proteolysis. Thus platelet activation at sites of vascular injury results in the release of high local concentrations of HMWM platelet-VWF that is more resistant to ADAMTS13, thereby facilitating platelet-plug formation.
•Platelet-VWF exists as a distinct natural glycoform.•Platelet-VWF is resistant to ADAMTS13 proteolysis.
Plasmodium falciparum malaria infection is associated with an early marked increase in plasma von Willebrand factor (VWF) levels, together with a pathological accumulation of hyperreactive ...ultra-large VWF (UL-VWF) multimers. Given the established critical role of platelets in malaria pathogenesis, these increases in plasma VWF raise the intriguing possibility that VWF may play a direct role in modulating malaria pathogenesis. To address this hypothesis, we used an established murine model of experimental cerebral malaria (ECM), in which wild-type (WT) C57BL/6J mice were infected with Plasmodium berghei ANKA. In keeping with findings in children with P falciparum malaria, acute endothelial cell activation was an early and consistent feature in the murine model of cerebral malaria (CM), resulting in significantly increased plasma VWF levels. Despite the fact that murine plasma ADAMTS13 levels were not significantly reduced, pathological UL-VWF multimers were also observed in murine plasma following P berghei infection. To determine whether VWF plays a role in modulating the pathogenesis of CM in vivo, we further investigated P berghei infection in VWF−/− C57BL/6J mice. Clinical ECM progression was delayed, and overall survival was significantly prolonged in VWF−/− mice compared with WT controls. Despite this protection against ECM, no significant differences in platelet counts or blood parasitemia levels were observed between VWF−/− and WT mice. Interestingly, however, the degree of ECM-associated enhanced blood–brain barrier permeability was significantly attenuated in VWF−/− mice compared with WT controls. Given the significant morbidity and mortality associated with CM, these novel data may have direct translational significance.
•ECM is associated with an early marked increase in plasma VWF levels and accumulation of UL-VWF multimers.•Following P berghei infection, VWF−/− mice survive significantly longer compared with WT controls.
Myeloid cell metabolic reprogramming is a hallmark of inflammatory disease; however, its role in inflammation-induced hypercoagulability is poorly understood.
We aimed to evaluate the role of ...inflammation-associated metabolic reprogramming in regulating blood coagulation.
We used novel myeloid cell-based global hemostasis assays and murine models of immunometabolic disease.
Glycolysis was essential for enhanced activated myeloid cell tissue factor expression and decryption, driving increased cell-dependent thrombin generation in response to inflammatory challenge. Similarly, inhibition of glycolysis enhanced activated macrophage fibrinolytic activity through reduced plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 activity. Macrophage polarization or activation markedly increased endothelial protein C receptor (EPCR) expression on monocytes and macrophages, leading to increased myeloid cell-dependent protein C activation. Importantly, inflammation-dependent EPCR expression on tissue-resident macrophages was also observed in vivo. Adipose tissue macrophages from obese mice fed a high-fat diet exhibited significantly enhanced EPCR expression and activated protein C generation compared with macrophages isolated from the adipose tissue of healthy mice. Similarly, the induction of colitis in mice prompted infiltration of EPCR+ innate myeloid cells within inflamed colonic tissue that were absent from the intestinal tissue of healthy mice.
Collectively, this study identifies immunometabolic regulation of myeloid cell hypercoagulability, opening new therapeutic possibilities for targeted mitigation of thromboinflammatory disease.
Calibrated Automated Thrombography (CAT) is a versatile and sensitive method for analyzing coagulation reactions culminating in thrombin generation (TG). Here, we present a CAT method for analyzing ...TG in murine whole blood by adapting the CAT assay used for measuring TG in human plasma. The diagnostically used artificial and physiologic factor XII (FXII) contact activators kaolin, ellagic acid and polyphosphate (polyP) stimulated TG in murine blood in a dose-dependent manner resulting in a gradual increase in endogenous thrombin potential and peak thrombin, with shortened lag times and times to peak. The activated FXII inhibitor rHA-Infestin-4 and direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) interfered with TG triggered by kaolin, ellagic acid and polyP and TG was completely attenuated in blood of FXII- (
) and FXI-deficient (
) mice. Moreover, reconstitution of blood from
mice with human FXII restored impaired contact-stimulated TG. HEK293 cell-purified polyP also initiated FXII-driven TG in mouse whole blood and addition of the selective inhibitor PPX_Δ12 ablated natural polyP-stimulated TG. In conclusion, the data provide a method for analysis of contact activation-mediated TG in murine whole blood. As the FXII-driven intrinsic pathway of coagulation has emerged as novel target for antithrombotic agents that are validated in mouse thrombosis and bleeding models, our novel assay could expedite therapeutic drug development.
Glycan determinants on von Willebrand factor (VWF) play critical roles in regulating its susceptibility to proteolysis and clearance. Abnormal glycosylation has been shown to cause von Willebrand ...disease (VWD) in a number of different mouse models. However, because of the significant technical challenges associated with accurate assessment of VWF glycan composition, the importance of carbohydrates in human VWD pathogenesis remains largely unexplored. To address this, we developed a novel lectin-binding panel to enable human VWF glycan characterization. This methodology was then used to study glycan expression in a cohort of 110 patients with low VWF compared with O blood group-matched healthy controls. Interestingly, significant interindividual heterogeneity in VWF glycan expression was seen in the healthy control population. This variation included terminal sialylation and ABO(H) blood group expression on VWF. Importantly, we also observed evidence of aberrant glycosylation in a subgroup of patients with low VWF. In particular, terminal α(2-6)-linked sialylation was reduced in patients with low VWF, with a secondary increase in galactose (Gal) exposure. Furthermore, an inverse correlation between Gal exposure and estimated VWF half-life was observed in those patients with enhanced VWF clearance. Together, these findings support the hypothesis that loss of terminal sialylation contributes to the pathophysiology underpinning low VWF in at least a subgroup of patients by promoting enhanced clearance. In addition, alterations in VWF carbohydrate expression are likely to contribute to quantitative and qualitative variations in VWF levels in the normal population. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT03167320.
•Terminal galactose exposure on VWF is significantly increased in a subgroup of patients with low VWF compared with controls.•Enhanced clearance of aberrantly glycosylated VWF contributes to the etiology underlying low VWF.
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•Age-dependent effects on plasma VWF levels in type 1 VWD define distinct subgroups with important differences in underlying pathogenesis.•Low VWF does not constitute a discrete clinical-pathological ...entity; rather, it is part of an age-dependent type 1 VWD evolving phenotype.
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There is significant ongoing debate regarding type 1 von Willebrand disease (VWD) defintion. Previous guidelines recommended patients with von Willebrand factor (VWF) levels <30 IU/dL be diagnosed type 1 VWD, whereas patients with significant bleeding and VWF levels from 30 to 50 IU/dL be diagnosed with low VWF. To elucidate the relationship between type 1 VWD and low VWF in the context of age-induced increases in VWF levels, we combined data sets from 2 national cohort studies: 162 patients with low VWF from the Low VWF in Ireland Cohort (LoVIC) and 403 patients with type 1 VWD from the Willebrand in The Netherlands (WiN) studies. In 47% of type 1 VWD participants, VWF levels remained <30 IU/dL despite increasing age. Conversely, VWF levels increased to the low VWF range (30-50 IU/dL) in 30% and normalized (>50 IU/dL) in 23% of type 1 VWD cases. Crucially, absolute VWF antigen (VWF:Ag) levels and increase of VWF:Ag per year overlapped between low VWF and normalized type 1 VWD participants. Moreover, multiple regression analysis demonstrated that VWF:Ag levels in low VWF and normalized type 1 VWD patients would not have been different had they been diagnosed at the same age (β = 0.00; 95% confidence interval, −0.03 to 0.04). Consistently, no difference was found in the prevalence of VWF sequence variants; factor VIII activity/VWF:Ag or VWF propeptide/VWF:Ag ratios; or desmopressin responses between low VWF and normalized type 1 VWD patients. In conclusion, our findings demonstrate that low VWF does not constitute a discrete clinical or pathological entity. Rather, it is part of an age-dependent type 1 VWD evolving phenotype. Collectively, these data have important implications for future VWD classification criteria.
von Willebrand disease (VWD) is the most common inherited bleeding disorder, but diagnosis and accurate subtyping of VWD are complex and have been controversial. Atiq et al analyzed data from 2 large cohort studies to illuminate the natural history of patients with reduced (30-50 IU/dL) von Willebrand factor (VWF) who did not meet the strict definition of type 1 VWD (VWF levels <30 IU/dL). The authors’ data support the hypothesis that low VWF is an age-dependent evolution of type 1 VWD rather than its own discrete clinical entity. This finding reinforces the general principle that bleeding phenotype should be the key determinant of management decisions in patients with VWD.
Although most plasma FVIII (Factor VIII) circulates in complex with VWF (von Willebrand factor), a minority (3%-5%) circulates as free-FVIII, which is rapidly cleared. Consequently, 20% of total ...FVIII may be cleared as free-FVIII. Critically, the mechanisms of free-FVIII clearance remain poorly understood. However, recent studies have implicated the MGL (macrophage galactose lectin) in modulating VWF clearance.
Since VWF and FVIII share similar glycosylation, we investigated the role of MGL in FVIII clearance. FVIII binding to MGL was assessed in immunosorbent and cell-based assays. In vivo, FVIII clearance was assessed in
and
mice.
In vitro-binding studies identified MGL as a novel macrophage receptor that binds free-FVIII in a glycan-dependent manner.
and
mice who received an anti-MGL1/2 blocking antibody both showed significantly increased endogenous FVIII activity compared with wild-type mice (
=0.036 and
<0.0001, respectively). MGL inhibition also prolonged the half-life of infused FVIII in
mice. To assess whether MGL plays a role in the clearance of free FVIII in a VWF-independent manner, in vivo clearance experiments were repeated in dual
mice. Importantly, the rapid clearance of free FVIII in
mice was significantly (
=0.012) prolonged in the presence of anti-MGL1/2 antibodies. Finally, endogenous plasma FVIII levels in
mice were significantly increased following MGL inhibition (
=0.016).
Cumulatively, these findings demonstrate that MGL plays an important role in regulating macrophage-mediated clearance of both VWF-bound FVIII and free-FVIII in vivo. We propose that this novel FVIII clearance pathway may be of particular clinical importance in patients with type 2N or type 3 Von Willebrand disease.
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