Effect of glycation on the properties of lipoprotein(a)

Lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] was glycated by incubation in vitro with glucose (0 to 200 mmol/L), and its properties were compared with native Lp(a) and native and glycated LDL. Glucose was incorporated into Lp(a) in proportions that mirrored the distribution of lysines between apolipoprotein (apo) B-100 and apo(a). Because the kringle IV domains of apo(a) are lysine poor, only 10% of glucose bound to apo(a), whereas 90% was attached to the apoB-100 of Lp(a). Approximately 3% of the lysines of both Lp(a) and LDL were modified, which is a level comparable with that observed in LDL isolated from diabetic individuals. Glucose uptake by Lp(a) and LDL was almost identical and was linear as a function of concentration and time. Glycation increased the negative charge of Lp(a) and LDL as monitored by electrophoresis and ion-exchange chromatography and also reduced the affinity of Lp(a) and LDL for heparin-Sepharose. Glycation did not affect the lysine-binding property of Lp(a) or generate measurable malondialdehyde oxidation adducts. The catabolism of glycated Lp(a) by human monocyte-derived macrophages (HMDMs), like that of native Lp(a), was largely LDL receptor independent. Both glycated Lp(a) and LDL were degraded at a comparatively faster rate and stimulated greater cholesteryl ester formation than their unmodified counterparts. However, the degradation rate of glycated Lp(a) was approximately four- to fivefold slower and its stimulation of cholesteryl ester formation was ninefold lower than that of either form of LDL. These results show that Lp(a) can be glycated nonenzymatically in vitro, that the incorporation of glucose is dependent on the distribution of lysines between apo(a) and apoB-100, and that glycation does not affect the lysine-binding properties of Lp(a). Furthermore, glycation produced modest increases in the degradation rate of Lp(a) and associated cholesteryl ester synthesis by HMDMs. Based on these data, glycation does not appear to significantly enhanced the atherogenic potential of unmodified Lp(a).