Attenuation of very late antigen-5-mediated adhesion of bone marrow-derived mast cells to fibronectin by peptides with inverted hydropathy to EF-hands

Release of allergic mediators from mast cells is enhanced by very late Ag (VLA)-5-mediated interaction of these cells with fibronectin. In this report, we show that VLA-5-mediated adhesion of bone marrow-derived mast cells to fibronectin can be induced by two different pathways: first, FcepsilonRI clustering, which depends on Calmodulin activation and extracellular Ca(2+), and, second, by Mn(2+) stimulation, which is independent of Calmodulin activation and antagonized by Ca(2+). Previous studies have shown the presence of several cation-binding domains in VLA-5 that are homologous to the calcium-binding EF-hands of Calmodulin. To show a role for EF-hands of different proteins in VLA-5-mediated adhesion, we used calcium-like Peptides (CALP), CALP1 and CALP2, designed to bind to EF-hands based on inverted hydropathy. CALP1 and, more potently, CALP2 inhibited FcepsilonRI-induced adhesion to fibronectin via different mechanisms. The target for the effects of CALP1 and 2 on FcepsilonRI-induced adhesion and degranulation was intracellular and likely involved Calmodulin. Interestingly only CALP2 was able to inhibit Mn(2+)-induced calmodulin-independent adhesion by interfering with an extracellular target, which is probably VLA-5. We conclude that CALP1 and 2 can inhibit VLA-5-mediated adhesion of mast cells to fibronectin through binding to EF-hands of multiple proteins, and that these Peptides can be used as lead compounds for the development of future therapy against allergy.