Heparin/heparan sulfate controls fibrillin-1, -2 and -3 self-interactions in microfibril assembly

Abstract

Fibrillins form multifunctional microfibrils in most connective tissues. Deficiencies in fibrillin assembly can result in fibrillinopathies, such as Marfan syndrome. We demonstrate the presence of heparin/heparan sulfate binding sites in fibrillin-2 and -3. Multimerization of all three fibrillins drastically increased the apparent affinity of their interaction with heparin/heparan sulfate. Surprisingly, contrary to other reports heparin/heparan sulfate strongly inhibited homo- and heterotypic N-to-C-terminal fibrillin interactions. These data suggest that heparin/heparan sulfate controls the formation of microfibrils at the bead interaction stage.

Keywords: Assembly; Connective tissue; Extracellular matrix; Fibrillin; Fibronectin; Heparan sulfate; Microfibrils.