Urokinase-type plasminogen activator （uPA） is a trypsin-like serine protease and plays a key role in several biological processes, including tissue remodeling, cell migration, and matrix degradation. The inhibitors of uPA have been shown to prevent the spread of metastasis and tumor growth, and accordingly uPA is widely recognized as a target for the treatment of cancer. In this work, we report the crystal structures of the complexes of uPA with its inhibitors： 4- （aminomethyl）-benzoic acid （AMBA） and 4-（aminomethyl-phenyl）-methanol （AMPM）, both at a resolution of 2.35 А. The inhibitory constants of these two inhibitors were measured by a chromogenic competitive assay, and it was found that AMBA is a better inhibitor for uPA （Ki = 2.68 mM） than AMPM （Ki = 13.99 mM）. The structural study shows that the binding mode of inhibitor AMBA on uPA is similar to that of AMPM on uPA, both docked into the active site S1 pocket of uPA. Structural details of these complexes are provided to explain the difference of inhibitory constants.
10C12 is an anticoagulant antibody identified from a phage display single-chain Fv human antibody library. It can be directed at the calcium-stabilized Gla domain of Factor-IX, an important coagulation factor in intrinsic pathway of blood coagulation cascade, and interfere with membrane anchoring of Factor IX, thus inhibiting blood coagulation function. 10C12 has been demonstrated as an effective anti-coagulant in attenuating thrombosis in several different animal models. Here, we report the crystal structure of the Fab fragment of 10C12. The crystal contains two Fab molecules in the asymmetric unit with identical conformation, forming a lattice with large cavities. In addition, comparison of this free Fab with the antigen-bound structure of 10C12 shows no change in CDR conformations and the relative disposition of the variable subunits of H and L chains, suggesting the rigid conformation of this 10C12 Fab and a lock-and-key mechanism of antibody-antigen recognition for 10C12.
