Differences in binding to the solid substratum and extracellular matrix may explain isoform-specific paracrine effects of platelet-derived growth factor.

We have studied the paracrine response of fibroblasts to the two homodimeric isoforms of platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF-AA and -BB). CHO-cells stably transfected with a B-chain cDNA expression vector (CHO-PDGF-B cells), were found to elicit a marked paracrine response when seeded at clonal density on preformed monolayers of human or murine fibroblasts; no such response was elicited by CHO-PDGF-A cells. Immunofluorescence microscopy of CHO-PDGF-B cell cultures showed the presence of a pericellular deposit of material reacting with antibodies against PDGF-BB; no corresponding PDGF-AA immunoreactive material was found in the CHO-PDGF-A cultures. The pericellular material, deposited by CHO-PDGF-B cells, was shown to have a growth promoting effect on target cells. Furthermore, we could show that 125I-PDGF-BB binds more efficiently than 125I-PDGF-AA to extracellular matrix prepared from foreskin fibroblast cultures, as well as to defined extracellular matrix components (fibronectin, laminin and collagen III). The results reveal a marked difference in the paracrine activity of PDGF-AA and PDGF-BB; the latter has a strong local growth enhancing effect, that is mostly likely to be ascribed to its association with components of the extracellular matrix.