Flow Analysis of Von Willebrand Factor Collagen Binding Mutants

Abstract 2213

Von Willebrand Factor (VWF) binds to exposed sub-endothelial collagen at sites of vessel injury principally via its A3 domain, although some evidence suggests that the A1 domain can compensate for the A3 domain under flow conditions if the A3 domain is absent or non-functional. Recently, several naturally occurring Von Willebrand disease-causing mutations have been indentified in the A3 domain; S1731T, W1745C, S1783, H1786D and most recently M1761K, as well as one mutation in the A1 domain (I1343V) all of which have defective collagen binding. While the collagen binding function of these mutations has been assessed under static conditions it remains to be established if these affect collagen binding under shear stress. In the present study the collagen binding mutants were expressed in HEK293T cells and collagen binding function determined using an in vitro flow assay. All of the mutations were expressed at similar levels to wild type (wt) VWF and demonstrated normal multimeric patterns and binding to GPIbα under static conditions. As expected, collagen binding analysis under static conditions confirmed the collagen binding defect of all the mutants, with reduced or abolished binding to both collagens type I and III for all the mutants except S1731T which demonstrated normal binding to collagen type III and slightly reduced binding to collagen type I. Analysis of platelet capture under flow conditions confirmed that all the mutants were able to capture platelets similarly to wtVWF. Analysis of VWF mediated platelet capture to a collagen surface under flow conditions confirmed the phenotype of the collagen binding mutants. With the exception of S1731T, which demonstrated normal platelet capture on both collagens, none of the mutants were able to bind to collagen type I or III under flow conditions, or mediate platelet capture at high shear stress. The collagen binding function of these mutants under flow was partially restored when co-expressed with wtVWF. Interestingly, in contrast to a previous study, a VWF variant lacking the A3 domain (VWF-ΔA3) failed to bind to collagen under shear stress and was not able to mediate platelet capture to collagen. Together these data confirm that the major collagen binding site in VWF is located in the A3 domain and demonstrate that collagen binding mutations affect VWF mediated platelet capture under shear stress.