Bmcystatin, a cysteine proteinase inhibitor characterized from the tick Boophilus microplus

The bovine tick Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus is a blood-sucking animal, which is responsible for Babesia spp and Anaplasma marginale transmission for cattle. From a B. microplus fat body cDNA library, 465 selected clones were sequenced randomly and resulted in 60 Contigs. An open reading frame (ORF) contains 98 amino acids named Bmcystatin, due to 70% amino acid identity to a classical type 1 cystatin from Ixodes scapularis tick (GenBank Accession No. ). The Bmcystatin amino acid sequence analysis showed two cysteine residues, theoretical pI of 5.92 and M(r) of 11 kDa. Bmcystatin gene was cloned in pET 26b vector and the protein expressed using bacteria Escherichia coli BL21 SI. Recombinant Bmcystatin (rBmcystatin) purified by affinity chromatography on Ni-NTA-agarose column and ionic exchange chromatography on HiTrap Q column presented molecular mass of 11 kDa, by SDS-PAGE and the N-terminal amino acid sequenced revealed unprocessed N-terminal containing part of pelB signal sequence. Purified rBmcystatin showed to be a C1 cysteine peptidase inhibitor with K(i) value of 0.1 and 0.6 nM for human cathepsin L and VTDCE (vitellin degrading cysteine endopeptidase), respectively. The rBmcystatin expression analyzed by semi-quantitative RT-PCR confirmed the amplification of a specific DNA sequence (294 bp) in the fat body and ovary cDNA preparation. On the other hand, a protein band was detected in the fat body, ovary, and the salivary gland extracts using anti-Bmcystatin antibody by Western blot. The present results suggest a possible role of Bmcystatin in the ovary, even though the gene was cloned from the fat body, which could be another site of this protein synthesis.     

Neospora caninum expresses an unusual single-domain Kazal protease inhibitor that is discharged into the parasitophorous vacuole

Serine protease inhibitors have been implicated in viral and parasite pathogenesis through their ability to inhibit apoptosis, provide protection against digestive enzymes in the gut and dictate host range specificity. Two Kazal family serine protease inhibitors from the obligate intracellular parasite Toxoplasma gondii (TgPI-1 and TgPI-2) have been characterised previously. Here, we describe the identification and initial characterisation of a novel Kazal inhibitor, NcPI-S, from a closely related apicomplexan parasite, Neospora caninum. Unlike the multidomain inhibitors identified in T. gondii, NcPI-S is a single domain inhibitor bearing a methionine in the position (P1) that typically dictates specificity for target proteases. Based on this, NcPI-S was predicted to inhibit elastase, chymotrypsin and subtilisin. However, we found that recombinant NcPI-S inhibited subtilisin very well, with little or no activity against elastase or chymotrypsin. NcPI-S localises to the dense granules and is secreted into the parasitophorous vacuole. Finally, antibodies raised against recombinant NcPI-S recognise two polypeptides in an N. caninum lysate, one with a molecular mass approximately 11 kDa and another at approximately 20 kDa. This, along with mass spectrometry analysis of recombinant NcPI-S, suggests that the inhibitor is expressed as a dimer in the parasite.     

Protease inhibitor from Moringa oleifera with potential for use as therapeutic drug and as seafood preservative

Protease inhibitors are well known to have several applications in medicine and biotechnology. Several plant sources are known to return potential protease inhibitors. In this study plants belonging to different families of Leguminosae, Malvaceae, Rutaceae, Graminae and Moringaceae were screened for the protease inhibitor. Among them Moringa oleifera, belonging to the family Moringaceae, recorded high level of protease inhibitor activity after ammonium sulfate fractionation. M. oleifera, which grows throughout most of the tropics and having several industrial and medicinal uses, was selected as a source of protease inhibitor since so far no reports were made on isolation of the protease inhibitor. Among the different parts of M. oleifera tested, the crude extract isolated from the mature leaves and seeds showed the highest level of inhibition against trypsin. Among the various extraction media evaluated, the crude extract prepared in phosphate buffer showed maximum recovery of the protease inhibitor. The protease inhibitor recorded high inhibitory activity toward the serine proteases thrombin, elastase, chymotrypsin and the cysteine proteases cathepsin B and papain which have more importance in pharmaceutical industry. The protease inhibitor also showed complete inhibition of activities of the commercially available proteases of Bacillus licheniformis and Aspergillus oryzae. However, inhibitory activities toward subtilisin, esperase, pronase E and proteinase K were negligible. Further, it was found that the protease inhibitor could prevent proteolysis in a commercially valuable shrimp Penaeus monodon during storage indicating the scope for its application as a seafood preservative. This is the first report on isolation of a protease inhibitor from M. oleifera.     

Purification and properties of a protease inhibitor from crayfish hemolymph

A protease inhibitor from the hemolymph of crayfish, Astacus astacus, has been purified by differential centrifugation, acid precipitation and preparative isoelectric focusing. The inhibitor was apparent homogenous in SDS-electrophoresis and had a molecular weight of 23,000. pI was determined to be 4.7 by isoelectric focusing. No inhibitory activity was lost when the inhibitor was incubated in a pH range of 1–11.5. The purified inhibitor was heat stable. Urea (6 m) had no effect upon the inhibitor. The inhibitor was active against subtilisin and a partly purified protease from the fungus Aphanomyces astaci. Pronase was slightly inhibited whereas trypsin, chymotrypsin, papain, Arthrobacter protease, and extracellular proteases from the fungi Aphanomyces stellatus and A. laevis were unaffected. The importance of protease inhibitors in pathogenesis between the parasitic fungus, A. astaci, and its crayfish host, A. astacus is discussed.     

Metarhizium anisopliae host-pathogen interaction: differential immunoproteomics reveals proteins involved in the infection process of arthropods

Metarhizium anisopliae is an entomopathogenic fungus well characterized for the biocontrol of a wide range of plagues. Its pathogenicity depends on the secretion of hydrolytic enzymes that degrade the host cuticle. To identify proteins involved in the infection process and in host specify, immunoproteomic analysis was performed using antiserum produced against crude extract of M. anisopliae cultured in the presence of Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus and Dysdercus peruvianus cuticles. Spots detected using antisera produced against M. anisopliae cultured in cuticles and spore surface proteins, but not with antiserum against M. anisopliae cultured in glucose, were identified so as to give insights about the infection process. An MS/MS allowed the identification of proteases, like elastase, trypsin, chymotrypsin, carboxypeptidase and subtilisin (Pr1A, Pr1I and PR1J), chitinases, DNase I and proline-rich protein. Chymotrypsin and Pr1I were inferred as host specific, being recognized in D. peruvianus infection only. This research represents an important contribution to the understanding the adaptation mechanisms of M. anisopliae to different hosts.     

Indicain, a dimeric serine protease from Morus indica cv. K2

A high molecular mass serine protease has been purified to homogeneity from the latex of Morus indica cv. K2 by the combination of techniques of ammonium sulfate precipitation, hydrophobic interaction chromatography, and size-exclusion chromatography. The protein is a dimer with a molecular mass of 134.5 kDa and with two monomeric subunits of 67.2 kDa and 67.3 (MALDI-TOF), held by weak bonds susceptible to disruption on exposure to heat and very low pH. Isoelectric point of the enzyme is pH 4.8. The pH and temperature optima for caseinolytic activity were 8.5 and 80 degrees C, respectively. The extinction coefficient (epsilon280(1%)) of the enzyme was estimated as 41.24 and the molecular structure consists of 52 tryptophan, 198 tyrosine and 42 cysteine residues. The enzyme activity was inhibited by phenylmethylsulfonylflouride, chymostatin and mercuric chloride indicating the enzyme to be a serine protease. The enzyme is fairly stable and similar to subtilases in its stability toward pH, strong denaturants, temperature, and organic solvents. Polyclonal antibodies specific to enzyme and immunodiffusion studies reveal that the enzyme has unique antigenic determinants. The enzyme has activity towards broad range of substrates comparable to those of subtilisin like proteases. The N-terminal residues of indicain (T-T-N-S-W-D-F-I-G-F-P) exhibited considerable similarity to those of other known plant subtilases, especially with cucumisin, a well-characterized plant subtilase. This is the first report of purification and characterization of a subtilisin like dimeric serine protease from the latex of M. indica cv. K2. Owing to these unique properties the reported enzyme would find applications in food and pharma industry.     

Partial purification and characterization of a cysteine protease inhibitor from the plerocercoid of Spirometra erinacei

Helminthic cysteine proteases are well known to play critical roles in tissue invasion, nutrient uptake, and immune evasion of the parasites. In the same manner, the sparganum, the plerocercoid of Spirometra mansoni, is also known to secrete a large amount of cysteine proteases. However, cysteine protease inhibitors regulating the proteolytic activities of the cysteine protease are poorly illustrated. In this regard, we partially purified an endogenous cysteine protease inhibitor from spargana and characterized its biochemical properties. The cysteine protease inhibitor was purified by sequential chromatographies using Resource Q anion exchanger and Superdex 200 HR gel filtration from crude extracts of spargana. The molecular weight of the purified protein was estimated to be about 11 kD on SDS-PAGE. It was able to inhibit papain and 27 kDa cysteine protease of spargana with the ratio of 25.7% and 49.1%, respectively, while did not inhibit chymotrypsin. This finding suggests that the cysteine protease inhibitor of spargana may be involved in regulation of endogenous cysteine proteases of the parasite, rather than interact with cysteine proteases from their hosts.     

Physico-chemical and antifungal properties of protease inhibitors from Acacia plumosa

This study was aimed at investigating the purification, biological activity, and some structural properties of three serine protease inhibitors isoforms, denoted ApTIA, ApTIB, and ApTIC from Acacia plumosa Lowe seeds. They were purified from the saline extract of the seeds, using Superdex-75 gel filtration and Mono-S ion exchange chromatography. They were further investigated by mass spectrometry, spectroscopic measurements, surface plasmon resonance, and inhibition assays with proteases and phytopathogenic fungi. The molecular mass of each isoform was estimated at ca. 20 kDa. Each contained two polypeptide chains linked by a disulfide bridge, with different isoelectric points that are acidic in nature. The N-terminal sequences of both chains indicated that they were Kunitz-type inhibitors. Circular dichroism (CD) analyses suggested the predominance of both disordered and beta-strands on ApTI isoforms secondary structure, as expected for β-II proteins. In addition, it was observed that the proteins were very stable, even at either extreme pH values or at high temperature, with denaturation midpoints close to 75 °C. The isoinhibitors could delay, up to 10 times, the blood coagulation time in vitro and inhibited action of trypsin (Ki 1.8 nM), α-chymotrypsin (Ki 10.3 nM) and kallikrein (Ki 0.58 μM). The binding of ApTIA, ApTIB, and ApTIC to trypsin and α-chymotrypsin, was investigated by surface plasmon resonance (SPR), this giving dissociation constants of 0.39, 0.56 and 0.56 nM with trypsin and 7.5, 6.9 and 3.5 nM with α-chymotrypsin, respectively. The growth profiles of Aspergillus niger, Thielaviopsis paradoxa and Colletotrichum sp. P10 were also inhibited by each isoforms. These three potent inhibitors from A. plumosa may therefore be of great interest as specific inhibitors to regulate proteolytic processes.     

Purification of a cysteine protease inhibitor from larval hemolymph of the tobacco hornworm (Manduca sexta) and functional expression of the recombinant protein

A cysteine protease inhibitor (CPI) with an apparent molecular mass of 11.5kDa was purified from larval hemolymph of the tobacco hornworm (Manduca sexta) by gel filtration on Sephadex G-50 followed by hydrophobic and ion-exchange column chromatographies. The purified cysteine proteinase inhibitor, denoted as MsCPI, strongly inhibited the plant cysteine protease, papain, with a K(i) value of 5.5 x 10(-9)M. Nucleotide sequence analysis of a partial cDNA encoding MsCPI indicated that MsCPI consists of 105 amino acid residues in a sequence that is similar to sarcocystatin A from Sarcophaga peregrina. However, northern blotting and PCR analyses using the specific primers of MsCPI suggested that the mRNA encoding MsCPI had a size of more than 12 kilobases, which included at least six tandemly repeated MsCPI segments. MsCPI was expressed in Escherichia coli and the recombinant protein effectively inhibited cysteine proteases from plants as well as from animals such as cathepsins B (K(i), 6.8 nM), H (3.0 nM), and L (0.87 nM). There was no inhibition exhibited toward trypsin, chymotrypsin, subtilisin, pepsin or themolysin.     

A novel slow-tight binding serine protease inhibitor from eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) plasma inhibits perkinsin, the major extracellular protease of the oyster protozoan parasite Perkinsus marinus

A serine protease inhibitor was purified from plasma of the eastern oyster, Crassostrea virginica. The inhibitor is a 7609.6 Da protein consisting of 71 amino acids with 12 cysteine residues that are postulated to form 6 intra-chain disulfide bridges. Sequencing of the cloned cDNA identified an open reading frame encoding a polypeptide of 90 amino acids, with the 19 N-terminal amino acids forming a signal peptide. No sequence similarity with known proteins was found in sequence databases. The protein inhibited the serine proteases subtilisin A, trypsin and perkinsin, the major extracellular protease of the oyster protozoan parasite, Perkinsus marinus, in a slow binding manner. The mechanism of inhibition involves a rapid binding of inhibitor to the enzyme to form a weak enzyme-inhibitor complex followed by a slow isomerization to form a very tight binding enzyme-inhibitor complex. The overall dissociation constants K(i) with subtilisin A, perkinsin and trypsin were 0.29 nM, 13.7 nM and 17.7 nM, respectively. No inhibition of representatives of the other protease classes was detected. This is the first protein inhibitor of proteases identified from a bivalve mollusk and it represents a new protease inhibitor family. Its tight binding to subtilisin and perkinsin suggests it plays a role in the oyster host defense against P. marinus.     

A small trypsin inhibitor from the frog of Odorrana grahami

A novel peptide inhibitor (OGTI) of serine protease with a molecular weight of 1949.8, was purified from the skin secretion of the frog, Odorrana grahami. Of the tested serine proteases, OGTI only inhibited the hydrolysis activity of trypsin on synthetic chromogenic substrate. This precursor deduced from the cDNA sequence is composed of 70 amino acid residues. The mature OGTI contains 17 amino acid residues including a six-residue loop disulfided by two half-cysteines (AVNIPFKVHFRCKAAFC). In addition to its unique six-residue loop, the overall structure and precursor of OGTI are different from those of other serine protease inhibitors. It is also one of the smallest serine protease inhibitors ever found.     

Interaction of Subtilisin BPN′ and Recombinant Fungal Protease Inhibitor F from Silkworm with Substituted P1 Site Residues

Fungal protease inhibitor F (FPI-F) from silkworm inhibits subtilisin and fungal proteases. FPI-F mutants P₁ residues of which, Thr²⁹, were replaced with Glu, Phe, Gly, Leu, Met, and Arg, were prepared. The inhibitory activities of mutated FPI-F against subtilisin and other mammalian proteases indicated that FPI-F might be a specific inhibitor toward subtilisin-type protease.     

Prophenoloxidase activation in the hemolymph of Sarcophaga bullata larvae

Phenoloxidase in the hemolymph of Sarcophaga bullata larvae is present as an inactive proenzyme form. Localization studies indicate that the majority of the prophenoloxidase is present in the plasma fraction whereas only a minor fraction (about 4%) is present in the cellular compartments (hemocytes). Inactive prophenoloxidase can be activated by zymosan, not by either endotoxin or laminarin. This activation process is inhibited by the serine protease inhibitors, benzamidine and p-nitrophenyl-p～-guanidobenzoate. Exogenously added proteases, such as chymotrypsin and subtilisin, also activated the prophenoloxidase in the whole hemolymph but failed to activate the partially purified proenzyme. However, an activating enzyme isolated from the larval cuticle, which exhibits trypsinlike specificity, activated the partially purified prophenoloxidase. Inhibition studies and activity measurements also revealed the presence of a similar activating enzyme in the hemolymph. Thus, the phenoloxidase system in Sarcophaga bullata larval hemolymph seems to be comprised of a cascade of reactions. An endogenous protease inhibitor isolated from the larvae inhibited chymotrypsin-mediated prophenoloxidase activation but failed to inhibit the cuticular activating enzyme-catalyzed activation. Based on these studies, the roles of prophenoloxidase, endogenous activating proteases, and protease inhibitor in insect immunity are discussed.     

Characterization and comparative 3D modeling of CmPI-II, a novel 'non-classical' Kazal-type inhibitor from the marine snail Cenchritis muricatus (Mollusca)

The complete amino acid sequence obtained by electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry of the proteinase inhibitor CmPI-II isolated from Cenchritis muricatus is described. CmPI-II is a 5480-Da protein with three disulfide bridges that inhibits human neutrophil elastase (HNE) (K(i) 2.6+/-0.2 nM), trypsin (K(i) 1.1+/-0.9 nM), and other serine proteinases such as subtilisin A (K(i) 30.8+/-1.2 nM) and pancreatic elastase (K(i) 145.0+/-4.4 nM); chymotrypsin, pancreatic and plasma kallikreins, thrombin and papain are not inhibited. CmPI-II shares homology with the Kazal-type domain and may define a new group of 'non-classical' Kazal inhibitors according to its Cys(I)-Cys(V) disulfide bridge position. The 3D model of CmPI-II exhibits similar secondary structure characteristics to Kazal-type inhibitors and concurs with circular dichroism experiments. A 3D model of the CmPI-II/HNE complex provides a structural framework for the interpretation of its experimentally determined K(i) value. The model shows both similar and different contacts at the primary binding sites in comparison with the structure of turkey ovomucoid third domain (OMTKY3)/HNE used as template. Additional contacts calculated at the protease-inhibitor interface could also contribute to the association energy of the complex. This inhibitor represents an exception in terms of specificity owing to its ability to strongly inhibit elastases and trypsin.     

Rhipicephalus sanguineus trypsin inhibitors present in the tick larvae: isolation,characterization, and partial primary structure determination

Blood sucking animals are a rich source of proteinase inhibitors mainly those that interfere in their host hemostatic systems. The tick Rhipicephalus sanguineus is an ectoparasite of dogs and other animals. The aims of this work were the purification and characterization of serine proteinase inhibitors present in R. sanguineus larvae (RsTI). The inhibitors (RsTI) were isolated by affinity chromatography on trypsin-Sepharose and ion exchange chromatographies in Resource Q and Mono S columns. These RsTIs were separated in around 12 different protein peaks, when they showed molecular masses between 8 and 18 kDa, by SDS-PAGE. Purified RsTIs presented differences in the specificity for different serine proteinases. RsTIQ2 was, better inhibitor than RsTIQ7 and RsTIS5 for neutrophil elastase, plasmin, and HuPK with dissociation constants (K(i)) of 1.3, 3.2, and 22 nM, respectively. Other inhibitors such as RsTIQ7, RsTIS3, and RsTIS5 also affected neutrophil elastase and plasmin with K(i) in the nM range. The RsTIQ2, RsTIQ7, and RsTIS5 amino acid sequence data allowed classifying them as members of the Kunitz-type serine proteinase inhibitor family, even though the RsTI role is still unknown. Our present results showed that serine proteinase inhibitors from R. sanguineus are similar to inhibitors from Boophilus microplus other hard tick species, suggesting a similar role of these inhibitors in hard tick species and also as a potential tool to generate or improve vaccine against different ectoparasites with an unique antigen.     

Loss of second and sixth conserved cysteine residues from trypsin inhibitor-like cysteine-rich domain-type protease inhibitors in Bombyx mori may induce activity against microbial proteases

Previous studies have indicated that most trypsin inhibitor-like cysteine-rich domain (TIL)-type protease inhibitors, which contain a single TIL domain with ten conserved cysteines, inhibit cathepsin, trypsin, chymotrypsin, or elastase. Our recent findings suggest that Cys^2nd and Cys^6th were lost from the TIL domain of the fungal-resistance factors in Bombyx mori, BmSPI38 and BmSPI39, which inhibit microbial proteases and the germination of Beauveria bassiana conidia. To reveal the significance of these two missing cysteines in relation to the structure and function of TIL-type protease inhibitors in B. mori, cysteines were introduced at these two positions (D36 and L56 in BmSPI38, D38 and L58 in BmSPI39) by site-directed mutagenesis. The homology structure model of TIL domain of the wild-type and mutated form of BmSPI39 showed that two cysteine mutations may cause incorrect disulfide bond formation of B. mori TIL-type protease inhibitors. The results of Far-UV circular dichroism (CD) spectra indicated that both the wild-type and mutated form of BmSPI39 harbored predominantly random coil structures, and had slightly different secondary structure compositions. SDS-PAGE and Western blotting analysis showed that cysteine mutations affected the multimerization states and electrophoretic mobility of BmSPI38 and BmSPI39. Activity staining and protease inhibition assays showed that the introduction of cysteine mutations dramaticly reduced the activity of inhibitors against microbial proteases, such as subtilisin A from Bacillus licheniformis, protease K from Engyodontium album, protease from Aspergillus melleus. We also systematically analyzed the key residue sites, which may greatly influence the specificity and potency of TIL-type protease inhibitors. We found that the two missing cysteines in B. mori TIL-type protease inhibitors might be crucial for their inhibitory activities against microbial proteases. The genetic engineering of TIL-type protease inhibitors may be applied in both health care and agricultural industries, and could lead to new methods for breeding fungus-resistant transgenic crops and antifungal transgenic silkworm strains.