Crystal and solution structures of fragments of the human leucocyte common antigen-related protein

Leucocyte common antigen-related protein (LAR) is a post-synaptic type I transmembrane receptor protein that is important for neuronal functionality and is genetically coupled to neuronal disorders such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). To understand the molecular function of LAR, structural and biochemical studies of protein fragments derived from the ectodomain of human LAR have been performed. The crystal structure of a fragment encompassing the first four FNIII domains (LAR^FN1-4) showed a characteristic L shape. SAXS data suggested limited flexibility within LAR^FN1-4, while rigid-body refinement of the SAXS data using the X-ray-derived atomic model showed a smaller angle between the domains defining the L shape compared with the crystal structure. The capabilities of the individual LAR fragments to interact with heparin was examined using microscale thermophoresis and heparin-affinity chromatography. The results showed that the three N-terminal immunoglobulin domains (LAR^Ig1-3) and the four C-terminal FNIII domains (LAR^FN5-8) both bound heparin, while LAR^FN1-4 did not. The low-molecular-weight heparin drug Innohep induced a shift in hydrodynamic volume as assessed by size-exclusion chromatography of LAR^Ig1-3 and LAR^FN5-8, while the chemically defined pentameric heparin drug Arixtra did not. Together, the presented results suggest the presence of an additional heparin-binding site in human LAR.