Highly purified lew molecular weight urokinase (LMR-UK), moving on SDS-PAGE (reduced and nan-reduced) as a single band of 32 kdalton, was labelled with 125I by the chlora- mine-T method. 106 cpn of this 125I-LMr-UK (94% TCA preci- pitable) were injected into the inferior vena cava of la- par atomized albino rats, which were maintained at 37°C. Blood samples were collected by cardiac puncture 5, 30 and 90 min respectively after the injection. Serun, obtained from these samples, was fractionated on a Sephadex G-100 column, calibrated with proteins of known Mr. Radioactivity was measured in the collected fractions.In the 5 min sample, the radioactivity was distributed in 2 peaks, corresponding to 32 kdalton and to < 70 kdalton respectively. In the 30 min sample, the distribution was characterized by a diminution of the 32 kdalton peak and the appearance of a third peak corresponding to a Mr of < 4 kdalton. In the 90 min sample, the LMr-UK peak had disappeared almost completely. About 40% of the 125I-activity was present in a skewed high Mr peak with a broad maximum in the 85-100 kdalton region; ≥ 60% of the 125I-activity was recovered in late fractions corresponding to < 4 kdalton. In control experiments, pooled rat serum was incubated in vitro with 125I-LMr-UK for 5, 30 and 90 min respectively and samples were fractionated on the same column. The radioactivity distribution shewed only the 32 and > 70 kdalton peaks, but no < 4 kdalton peak.These results suggest that LMr-UK is complexed to a carrier protein, both in vivo and in vitro, but that it is degraded into small fragments in vivo only. Attempts to characterize the nature of these complexes are in progress.
Synergistic effect of nitrilotriacetate on iron mobilization by desferrioxamine in vivo
