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Identification of Heparin‐Binding Domains in the Amyloid Precursor Protein of Alzheimer's Disease by Deletion Mutagenesis and Peptide Mapping
Author(s) -
Clarris Heidi J.,
Cappai Roberto,
Heffernan Damien,
Beyreuther Konrad,
Masters Colin L.,
Small David H.
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
journal of neurochemistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.75
H-Index - 229
eISSN - 1471-4159
pISSN - 0022-3042
DOI - 10.1046/j.1471-4159.1997.68031164.x
Subject(s) - heparin , heparan sulfate , biochemistry , glycosaminoglycan , amyloid precursor protein , chemistry , binding site , neurite , amyloid (mycology) , mutant , mutagenesis , peptide , p3 peptide , plasma protein binding , alzheimer's disease , binding domain , microbiology and biotechnology , biology , in vitro , gene , disease , medicine , inorganic chemistry , pathology
Recent studies have shown that the binding of the amyloid protein precursor (APP) of Alzheimer's disease to heparan sulfate proteoglycans (HSPGs) can modulate a neurite outgrowth‐promoting function associated with APP. We used three different approaches to identify heparin‐binding domains in APP. First, as heparin‐binding domains are likely to be within highly folded regions of proteins, we analyzed the secondary structure of APP using several predictive algorithms. This analysis showed that two regions of APP 695 contain a high degree of secondary structure, and clusters of basic residues, considered mandatory for heparin binding, were found principally within these regions. To determine which domains of APP bind heparin, deletion mutants of APP 695 were prepared and analyzed for binding to a heparin affinity column. The results suggested that there must be at least two distinct heparin‐binding regions in APP. To identify novel heparin‐binding regions, peptides homologous to candidate heparin‐binding domains were analyzed for their ability to bind heparin. These experiments suggested that APP contains at least four heparin‐binding domains. The presence of more than one heparin‐binding domain on APP suggests the possibility that APP may interact with more than one type of glycosaminoglycan.