Structural and functional analysis of two small leucine-rich repeat proteoglycans, fibromodulin and chondroadherin

•The crystal structures of fibromodulin and chondroadherin have been determined.•Fibromodulin and chondroadherin are monomeric in solution.•Chondroadherin binds to a unique site in type II collagen that contains the sequence GAOGPSGFQGLOGPOGPO (O, hydroxyproline).•In collagen fibres, the chondroadherin binding site is adjacent to the cross-linking site, KGHR.

The small leucine-rich proteoglycans (SLRPs) are important regulators of extracellular matrix assembly and cell signalling. We have determined crystal structures at ~ 2.2 Å resolution of human fibromodulin and chondroadherin, two collagen-binding SLRPs. Their overall fold is similar to that of the prototypical SLRP, decorin, but unlike decorin neither fibromodulin nor chondroadherin forms a stable dimer. A previously identified binding site for integrin α2β1 maps to an α-helix in the C-terminal cap region of chondroadherin. Interrogation of the Collagen Toolkits revealed a unique binding site for chondroadherin in collagen II, and no binding to collagen III. A triple-helical peptide containing the sequence GAOGPSGFQGLOGPOGPO (O is hydroxyproline) forms a stable complex with chondroadherin in solution. In fibrillar collagen I and II, this sequence is aligned with the collagen cross-linking site KGHR, suggesting a role for chondroadherin in cross-linking.