@article {1651435, title = {Conformation of von Willebrand factor in shear flow revealed with stroboscopic single-molecule imaging}, journal = {Blood}, year = {2022}, month = {2022 Aug 30}, abstract = {von Willebrand factor (VWF) is a multimeric blood protein that acts as a mechanical probe, responding to changes in flow to initiate platelet plug formation. Previously, our labs had shown using single-molecule imaging that shear stress can extend surface-tethered VWF, but paradoxically we found that the required shear stress was higher than reported for free-in-flow VWF-an observation inconsistent with basic physical principles. To resolve this inconsistency critical to VWF{\textquoteright}s molecular mechanism, we measured free VWF extension in shear flow using PULSIS-Pulsed Laser Stroboscopic Imaging of Single molecules. Here, laser pulses of different durations are used to capture multiple images of the same molecule within each frame, enabling accurate length measurements in the presence of motion blur. At high shear stresses, we observed a mean shift in VWF extension of less than 200 nm, much shorter than the multiple-micron extensions previously reported with no evidence for the predicted sharp globule-stretch conformational transition. Modeling VWF with a Brownian dynamics simulation, our results are consistent with VWF behaving as an uncollapsed polymer rather than the theorized compact ball. The muted response of free VWF to high shear rates implies that 1) the tension experienced by free VWF in physiological shear flow is lower than indicated by previous reports and 2) that tethering to platelets or the vessel wall is required to mechanically activate VWF adhesive function for primary hemostasis.}, issn = {1528-0020}, doi = {10.1182/blood.2022016969}, author = {Bergal, Hans T and Jiang, Yan and Yang, Darren and Springer, Timothy A. and Wong, Wesley P} }