Concentration and relative molecular mass of hyaluronate in lymph and blood

Abstract

Human lymph was collected from patients with leaking lymph vessels after thoracic surgery. Ovine lymph was obtained from the mesenteric, lumbar, popliteal and prescapular lymph ducts by cannulation. The concentration of hyaluronate varied considerably (between 0.2 and 50 mg/l) and the highest concentrations were found in mesenteric lymph. The Mr of the polysaccharide showed a great polydispersity and variation between individuals and in different regions of the lymphatic system. High-Mr hyaluronate (greater than 10(6) was present in lymph both from man and sheep. Hyaluronate was also isolated by affinity chromatography in 70-80% yield from human serum and plasma obtained from healthy individuals and patients with rheumatoid arthritis and primary biliary cirrhosis. The weight (Mw)- and number (Mn)-average relative molecular masses were roughly the same in the three groups [(1.4-2.7) X 10(5) and (2.1-5.7) X 10(4) respectively]. The low Mr of hyaluronate in blood compared with that in lymph is explained by a preferential uptake of the large molecules by the liver endothelial cells.

The Hyaluronan Receptor for Endocytosis (HARE) Activates NF-κB-mediated Gene Expression in Response to 40–400-kDa, but Not Smaller or Larger, Hyaluronans

“…SEC analysis of serum HA from healthy donors and patients with rheumatoid arthritis or primary biliary cirrhosis revealed varied concentrations of low-range iHA (140 -270 kDa). Healthy donors had a relatively low serum HA concentration (21 g/liter), whereas rheumatoid arthritis (397 g/liter) and biliary cirrhosis (629 g/liter) patients showed highly increased levels (67). All the HA sizes reported in the above studies are within the signaling size range for HA activation of HARE-mediated signaling in sinusoidal endothelial cells of liver and perhaps spleen.…”

Dynamic role of hyaluronan (HYA) in connective tissue activation and inflammation

“…This, together with the observations that the lamina propria of the villi is characterized by a considerable amount of HYA [38] and that intestinal lymph has a very high concentration of HYA [39] suggest that the interstitium of the intestinal tract has a comparably high turnover of HYA.…”

Interstitial Fluid and Lymph Formation and Transport: Physiological Regulation and Roles in Inflammation and Cancer

“…All are bound covalently to a protein backbone with the exception of hyaluronan, and the combined macromolecule is called a proteoglycan (PG) (25). They are immobilized in the interstitium with the exception of hyaluronan that has been found in lymph in substantial amounts (464). Recently, an important role for GAGs has been suggested in maintaining a concentration gradient of growth factors or morphogens because of the graded affinities between different GAG sequences with the given protein (374).…”