Conformation of high molecular weight kininogen: effects of kallikrein and factor XIa cleavage

The effect of kallikrein and factor XIa proteolysis of high molecular weight kininogen (HK) was investigated. Circular dichroism (CD) spectroscopy showed that cleavage of HK by plasma kallikrein or urinary kallikrein, both of which result in an active cofactor (HKa), results in conformational change that is characterized by increase in CD ellipticity at 222 nm. This suggests an increase in organized secondary structures. By contrast, cleavage of HK by factor XIa which results in an inactive cofactor (HKi) is characterized by a dramatic decrease in CD ellipticity at 222 nm suggesting an entirely different type of conformational change. The intrinsic fluorescence of HK is enhanced after cleavage by all three proteases. These conformational changes may play a role in determining the structure and function of HKa and HKi.