Molecular cloning and sequence analysis of cDNA encoding human prostatic acid phosphatase

lambda gt11 clones encoding human prostatic acid phosphatase (PAP) (EC 3.1.3.2) were isolated from human prostatic cDNA libraries by immunoscreening with polyclonal antisera. Sequence data obtained from several overlapping clones indicated that the composite cDNAs contained the complete coding region for PAP, which encodes a 354-residue protein with a calculated molecular mass of 41,126 Da. In the 5'-end, the cDNA codes for a signal peptide of 32 amino acids. Direct protein sequencing of the amino-terminus of the mature protein and its proteolytic fragments confirmed the identity of the predicted protein sequence. PAP has no apparent sequence homology to other known proteins. However, both the cDNA clones coding for human placental alkaline phosphatase and PAP have an alu-type repetitive sequence about 900 nucleotides downstream from the coding region in the 3'-untranslated region. Two of our cDNA clones differed from others at the 5'-ends. RNA blot analysis indicated mRNA of 3.3 kb. We are continuing to study whether acid phosphatases form a gene family as do alkaline phosphatases.     

Identification of a novel transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta 5) mRNA in Xenopus laevis

A novel transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) mRNA of about 3.0 kilobases, which encodes a putative protein of 382 amino acids, has been identified in amphibians by cDNA cloning. This mRNA, which we designate as TGF-beta 5, is developmentally regulated and highly expressed beginning at early neurula (stage 14) and in many adult tissues in Xenopus laevis. Following the first methionine, the putative precursor protein has a hydrophobic region, approximately 22 amino acids long, which probably represents a signal sequence, similar to that found in TGF-beta s 1-3. The precursor also has potential sites for glycosylation, integrin binding (RGD), and a tetrabasic amino acid (RKKR) site for potential cleavage of the precursor peptide to a biologically active protein. The putative mature protein consists of 112 amino acids with 9 cysteines and has 76, 66, 69, and 72% identity to TGF-beta s 1-4, respectively.     

Cloning and sequence analysis of membrane-bound alkaline phosphatase cDNA of the silkworm, Bombyx mori.

The nucleotide sequence (1974 bp) of cDNA coding for membrane-bound alkaline phosphatases (m-ALP) of Bombyx mori was isolated. The cDNA clone contained an open reading frame encoding a polypeptide (547 amino acids), which contains a hydrophobic signal peptide of 36 amino acids and the mature protein of 511 amino acids (Mr = 56,163). We found a highly hydrophobic domain presumed to be a membrane anchoring region at the C-terminus. Comparing analysis between Bombyx m-ALP and mammalian and Escherichia coli ALPs suggested an evolutionary relationship of sharing a common ancestral gene.     

The primary structure of the iron-sulfur subunit of ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase from Neurospora, determined by cDNA and gene sequencing

The primary structure of the iron-sulfur subunit of ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase from Neurospora mitochondria was determined by cDNA and genomic DNA sequencing. A first cDNA was identified from a cDNA bank cloned in Escherichia coli by hybridization selection of mRNA, cell-free protein synthesis and immunoadsorption. Further cDNA and geonomic DNA were identified by colony filter hybridization. The N-terminal sequence of the mature protein was determined by automated Edman degradation. From the sequence a molecular mass of 24749 Da results for the precursor protein and of 21556 Da for the mature protein. The presequence consists of 32 amino acids with four arginines as the only charged residues. The mature protein consists of 199 amino acids. It is characterized by a small N-terminal hydrophilic part of 29 residues, a hydrophobic stretch of 25 residues and a large C-terminal hydrophilic domain of 145 residues. The only four cysteines of the protein, which are assumed to bind the 2 Fe-2S cluster, are located in a moderate hydrophobic region of this large domain. Cysteines 3 and 4 are unusually arranged in that they are separated by only one proline. From sequence data the arrangement of the subunit in the membrane is deduced.     

Molecular cloning and sequence analysis of human placental ferredoxin

We have characterized several clones specific for the human iron-sulfur protein, ferredoxin, which is involved in electron transfer to mitochondrial cytochromes P-450. Clones were isolated from a human placental cDNA expression library in lambda gt11 by immunoscreening with antibody to bovine adrenal ferredoxin. One clone contained the entire amino acid coding sequence (552 bp) together with 27 bp at the 5'-terminus and approximately 0.9 kb at the 3'-terminus; this form appears to correspond to the major mRNA species of approximately 1.7 kb observed on Northern blots of placental mRNA. The deduced amino acid sequence suggests that human ferredoxin is synthesized as a precursor of 184 amino acids (Mr 19,371) which is cleaved to yield a polypeptide of 124 amino acids (Mr 13,546). The mature protein is highly acidic, and the sequence is very similar to those of bovine and porcine adrenodoxins with the exception of substitutions and variations in length at the C-terminus. The N-terminal precursor segment, on the other hand, is considerably diverged from that determined for bovine adrenodoxin, but is similar in overall basicity and the pattern of occurrence of arginine residues.     

Mouse protamine 2 is synthesized as a precursor whereas mouse protamine 1 is not.

The nuclei of mouse spermatozoa contain two protamine variants, mouse protamine 1 (mP1) and mouse protamine 2 (mP2). The amino acid sequence predicted from mP1 cDNAs demonstrates that mP1 is a 50-amino-acid protein with strong homology to other mammalian P1 protamines. Nucleotide sequence analysis of independently isolated, overlapping cDNA clones indicated that mP2 is initially synthesized as a precursor protein which is subsequently processed into the spermatozoan form of mP2. The existence of the mP2 precursor was confirmed by amino acid composition and sequence analysis of the largest of a set of four basic proteins isolated from late-step spermatids whose synthesis is coincident with that of mP1. The sequence of the first 10 amino acids of this protein, mP2 precursor 1, exactly matches that predicted from the nucleotide sequence of cDNA and genomic mP2 clones. The amino acid composition of isolated mP2 precursor 1 very closely matches that predicted from the mP2 cDNA nucleotide sequence. Sequence analysis of the amino terminus of isolated mature mP2 identified the final processing point within the mP2 precursor. These studies demonstrated that mP2 is synthesized as a precursor containing 106 amino acids which is processed into the mature, 63-amino-acid form found in spermatozoa.     

Amino acid and cDNA sequences of a methionine-rich 2S protein from sunflower seed (Helianthus annuus L.)

The amino acid sequence of a methionine-rich 2S seed protein from sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) and the sequence of a cDNA clone which codes for the entire primary translation product have been determined. The mature protein consists of a single polypeptide chain of 103 amino acids (molecular mass 12133 Da) which contains 16 residues of methionine and 8 residues of cysteine. The cDNA sequence established that the protein is synthesized as a precursor of 141 residues with a typical hydrophobic signal sequence of 25 residues followed by a further 13-residue hydrophobic pro-sequence which is presumably removed by post-translational cleavage. The sequence of the mature protein and that deduced from the cDNA were identical with no evidence of processing at the C-terminus. Comparison of the sunflower methionine-rich protein sequence with sequences of other seed 2S proteins from dicotyledons and monocotyledons showed limited but distinct sequence similarities; in particular the arrangement of the cysteine residues was conserved. The sunflower protein shows 34% identity with the methionine-rich Brazil nut 2S protein and the prepro regions of the precursors of these two proteins show about 50% identity. This similarity indicates that these methionine-rich 2S proteins have diverged as a subclass of the 2S superfamily of proteins which contain only 2-3% methionine. While the related 2S proteins from other dicotyledons are processed to a small and large subunit, the sunflower protein is not cleaved in this way.     

cDNA sequence and deduced amino acid sequence of the precursor of the 37-kDa inner envelope membrane polypeptide from spinach chloroplasts. Its transit peptide contains an amphiphilic alpha-helix as the only detectable structural element

We present the nucleotide sequence and the deduced amino acid sequence of a cDNA clone that encodes the entire precursor of the 37-kDa inner envelope membrane protein from spinach chloroplasts. The precursor protein consists of 344 amino acids (Mr 38,976). In vitro processing followed by radiosequence analysis of the in vitro transcribed and translated precursor protein revealed that its transit peptide consists of only 21 amino acid residues. The transit peptide has the potential to form an amphiphilic alpha-helix with a strong hydrophobic moment. It is speculated that this structural element represents an ancestral envelope-targeting domain. The in vitro synthesized precursor protein is directed to the chloroplasts and it is inserted into the envelope membrane in an ATP-dependent manner. The mature protein (323 amino acid residues, Mr 36,830) has a moderate hydrophobicity and contains only one membrane-spanning segment which is located at the C-terminus and possibly anchors the protein within the envelope membrane.     

Biosynthesis of placental alkaline phosphatase and its post-translational modification by glycophospholipid for membrane-anchoring

The biosynthesis and post-translational modification of placental alkaline phosphatase were studied in human choriocarcinoma cells, JEG-3. Pulse-chase experiments with [35S]methionine demonstrated that placental alkaline phosphatase was synthesized as a major precursor form with Mr 63,000, which was then converted to a mature form with Mr 66,000, by processing of its N-linked oligosaccharides from the high-mannose type to the complex type. In addition, the two forms of the protein were found to be modified by a glycophospholipid, components of which were characterized by metabolic incorporation into placental alkaline phosphatase of 3H-labeled compounds such as myo-inositol, palmitic acid, stearic acid, mannose, glucosamine, and ethanolamine. When placental alkaline phosphatase labeled with these compounds was treated with phosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C or papain, the phospholipase C removed only the 3H-labeled fatty acids, whereas papain, that is known to cleave the C-terminal region, released all the radioactive glycolipid components including [3H]ethanolamine. More detailed analysis with shorter pulse-chase experiments demonstrated that placental alkaline phosphatase was primarily synthesized as a form with Mr 64,500 which was not yet labeled with [3H]palmitic acid. This form was converted by papain digestion to the above-mentioned major precursor with Mr 63,000. Taken together, these results suggest that placental alkaline phosphatase is initially synthesized as the precursor with Mr 64,500, which is immediately converted to the intermediate form with Mr 63,000 by simultaneously occurring proteolysis of the C terminus and replacement by the glycophospholipid, and finally to the mature form with Mr 66,000 by terminal glycosylation of its N-linked oligosaccharides. The glycophospholipid thus attached is considered to function as the membrane-anchoring domain of placental alkaline phosphatase.     

Structural gene for the phosphate-repressible phosphate-binding protein of Escherichia coli has its own promoter: complete nucleotide sequence of the phoS gene

The complete nucleotide sequence of the phoS gene, the structural gene for the phosphate-repressible, periplasmic phosphate-binding protein Escherichia coli K-12, was determined. The phosphate-binding protein is synthesized in a precursor form which includes an additional N-terminal segment containing 25 amino acid residues, with the general characteristics of a signal sequence. The amino acid sequence derived from the nucleotide sequence shows the mature protein to be composed of 321 amino acids with a calculated molecular weight of 34,427. The phoS gene is not part of an operon and is transcribed counterclockwise with respect to the E. coli genetic map. A promoter region has been identified on the basis of homology with the consensus sequence of other E. coli promoter regions. However, an alternative promoter region has been identified on the basis of homology with the promoter regions of the phoA and phoE genes, the structural genes for alkaline phosphatase and outer-membrane pore protein e, respectively.     

Molecular cloning of human chondromodulin-I, a cartilage-derived growth modulating factor, and its expression in Chinese hamster ovary cells.

Bovine chondromodulin-I (ChM-I) purified from fetal cartilage stimulated the matrix synthesis of chondrocytes, and inhibited the growth of vascular endothelial cells in vitro. The human counterpart of this bovine growth regulating factor has not been identified. We report here the cloning of human ChM-I precursor cDNA and its functional expression in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells. We first identified a genomic DNA fragment which encoded the N-terminus of the ChM-I precursor, and then isolated human ChM-I cDNA from chondrosarcoma tissue by PCR. The deduced amino acid sequence revealed that mature human ChM-I consists of 120 amino acids. In total, 16 amino acid residues were substituted in the human sequence, compared to the bovine counterpart. Almost of all the substitutions were found in the N-terminal hydrophilic domain. In the C-terminal hydrophobic domain (from Phe42 to Val120), the amino acid sequence was identical except for Tyr90, indicating a functional significance of the domain. Northern blotting and in situ hybridization indicated a specific expression of ChM-I mRNA in cartilage. We also successfully determined the cartilage-specific localization of ChM-I protein, using a specific antibody against recombinant human ChM-I. Multiple transfection of the precursor cDNA into CHO cells enabled us to isolate the mature form of human ChM-I from the culture supernatant. Purified recombinant human ChM-I stimulated proteoglycan synthesis in cultured chondrocytes. In contrast, it inhibited the tube morphogenesis of cultured vascular endothelial cells in vitro and angiogenesis in chick chorioallantoic membrane in vivo.     

The imported preprotein of the proteolipid subunit of the mitochondrial ATP synthase from Neurospora crassa. Molecular cloning and sequencing of the mRNA.

The proteolipid subunit of the mitochondrial ATP synthase from Neurospora crassa is an extremely hydrophobic protein of 81 amino acid residues, which is imported into mitochondria as a precursor of mol. wt. 15 000. The primary structure of the imported form has now been determined by isolating and analyzing cDNA clones of the preproteolipid mRNA. An initial cDNA clone was identified by hybridizing total polyadenylated RNA to pooled cDNA recombinant plasmids from an ordered clone bank and subsequent cell-free translation of hybridization-selected mRNA. Further preproteolipid clones were identified at a frequency of 0.2% by colony filter hybridization. One isolated cDNA represented the major part of the preproteolipid mRNA. The nucleotide sequence showed 243 bases corresponding to the mature proteolipid and, in addition, 178 bases coding for an amino-terminal presequence . Non-coding sequences of 48 bases at the 5' end and of 358 bases at the 3' end plus a poly(A) tail were determined. The long presequence of 66 amino acids is very polar, in contrast to the lipophilic mature proteolipid, and includes 12 basic and no acidic side chains. It is suggested that the presequence is specifically designed to solubilize the proteolipid for post-translational import into the mitochondria.     

Nucleotide sequence of the cDNA encoding the precursor for mitochondrial serine:pyruvate aminotransferase of rat liver

The nucleotide sequence of the mRNA coding for the precursor of mitochondrial serine:pyruvate aminotransferase of rat liver was determined from those of cDNA clones. The mRNA comprises at least 1533 nucleotides, except the poly(A) tail, and encodes a polypeptide consisting of 414 amino acid residues with a molecular mass of 45,834 Da. Comparison of the N-terminal amino acid sequence of mitochondrial serine:pyruvate aminotransferase with the nucleotide sequence of the mRNA showed that the mature form of the mitochondrial enzyme consisted of 390 amino acid residues of 43,210 Da. The amino acid composition of mitochondrial serine:pyruvate aminotransferase deduced from the nucleotide sequence of the cDNA showed good agreement with the composition determined on acid hydrolysis of the purified protein. The extra 24 amino acid residues correspond to the N-terminal extension peptide (pre-sequence) that is indispensable for the specific import of the precursor protein into mitochondria. In the extension peptide there are four basic amino acids distributed among hydrophobic amino acids and, as revealed on helical wheel analysis, the putative alpha-helical structure of the peptide was amphiphilic in nature. The secondary structures of the mature serine:pyruvate aminotransferase and three other aminotransferases of rat liver were predicted from their amino acid sequences. Their secondary structures exhibited a common feature and so we propose the specific lysine residue which binds pyridoxal phosphate as the active site of serine:pyruvate aminotransferase.     

Molecular analysis of an auxin binding protein gene located on chromosome 4 of Arabidopsis.

We have isolated a cDNA clone from Arabidopsis, At-ERabp1, for the Arabidopsis auxin binding protein located in the lumen of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). This cDNA clone codes for a protein related to the major auxin binding protein from maize, Zm-ERabp1. A single open reading frame, 594 bases in length, predicts a protein of 198 amino acid residues and a molecular mass of 22,044 D. The primary amino acid sequence contains an N-terminal hydrophobic signal sequence of 33 amino acids. We demonstrated by in vitro studies that the At-ERabp1 protein is translocated into ER-derived microsomes. The protein was processed, and the cleavage site for the N-terminal signal peptide was determined by radiosequencing. The mature protein is composed of 165 amino acid residues, with a molecular mass of 18,641 D. The At-ERabp1 protein contains potential N-glycosylation sites (Asn46-Ile-Ser and Asn130-Ser-Thr). In vitro transport studies demonstrated cotranslational glycosylation. Retention within the lumen of the ER correlates with an additional signal located at the C terminus and represented by the amino acids Lys196-Asp-Glu-Leu, well known to be essential for active retrieval of proteins into the lumen of the ER. DNA gel blot analysis of genomic DNA revealed single hybridizing bands, suggesting that only a single At-ERabp1 gene is present in the Arabidopsis genome. Restriction fragment length polymorphism mapping indeed revealed a single locus mapping to chromosome 4.     

Amino-acid sequence of human alpha 2-antiplasmin

The amino-acid sequence of human alpha 2-antiplasmin was determined by Edman degradation of peptides purified from CNBr, tryptic and chymotryptic digests. Of the total sequence of 452 amino acids of mature alpha 2-antiplasmin, as deduced from the cDNA sequence [Holmes et al. (1987) J. Biol. Chem. 262, 1659-1664], 444 residues were identified by amino-acid sequencing. Two differences were found between the peptide and cDNA analyses (Gly instead of Leu at position 10 and Gly instead of Ser at position 369). alpha 2-Antiplasmin contains two disulfide bridges (Cys64-Cys104 and Cys31-Cys113) and four glucosamine-based carbohydrate chains attached to Asn87, Asn256, Asn270 and Asn277. alpha 2-Antiplasmin is homologous with 12 other proteins belonging to the serine protease inhibitor (serpin) superfamily.     

Cloning and expression of a cDNA encoding human placental protein 11, a putative serine protease with diagnostic significance as a tumor marker

The placental protein 11 (PP11) can act as a tumor marker because of its specific association with various forms of cancer. A lambda gt11 cDNA library prepared from human placenta was screened with a polyclonal anti-PP11 antiserum. Out of 10(6) independent clones, only one clone reacted with the anti-PP11 antiserum. The isolated cDNA coded only for the carboxy-terminal part of PP11 and was subsequently used to rescreen a lambda gt10 placental cDNA library. Two cDNA clones out of 10(6) screened were identified encoding the entire protein of 369 amino acids, including a typical hydrophobic signal sequence of 18 amino acids. Expression of the PP11 cDNA coding sequence in Escherichia coli resulted in the synthesis of a protein with the expected size which can be specifically immunoprecipitated with anti-PP11 antiserum. Fractionation experiments revealed that two forms of the protein are present in the bacterial cell: a higher-molecular-weight form of approximately 42 kD in the cytoplasm and a smaller-molecular-weight form of approximately 42 kD in the periplasm. This result indicates that PP11 can be synthesized in E. coli and is process by removal of the hydrophobic signal sequence. Both the placental and the processed recombinant PP11 protein exhibit a protease activity.     

Procaine, a local anesthetic interacting with the cell membrane, inhibits the processing of precursor forms of periplasmic proteins in Escherichia coli.

Treatment of Escherichia coli cells with procaine (0.55%, w/v) results in the accumulation of precursor in addition to mature forms of two periplasmic proteins, alkaline phosphatase and glutamine-binding protein. The precursor form of alkaline phosphatase has a higher molecular weight than the mature form by about 2600. An experimental technique is described to isolate and purify precursor forms of any presumably exported protein. After the membrane solubilization step in the presence of nonionic detergent, a peptidase is stimulated, resulting in partial cleavage of the precursors. The products of this cleavage have been identified as the mature protein and presumably the signal peptide in the case of alkaline phosphatase. The amino acid composition of this peptide, which is comprised of 25 residues, has been determined. Procaine (0.55%, w/v) causes an increase in molecular packing of lipid molecules in the membrane which might result in an alteration of membrane fluidity sufficient for selective inhibition of processing of precursors of exported proteins.     

Complete nucleotide sequence of hepatic 5-aminolaevulinate synthase precursor

Chick embryo liver mitochondrial matrix protein, 5-aminolaevulinate synthase, is synthesised initially as a larger cytosolic precursor. In this report we present the complete nucleotide sequence of a cDNA clone coding for the precursor together with corresponding confirmatory amino acid sequence of peptides derived from purified mature mitochondrial enzyme. The deduced amino acid sequence shows that the precursor consists of mature enzyme of 579 amino acids and an N-terminal extension of 56 amino acids. The latter presequence is highly basic in character as found with other mitochondrial preproteins.     

Primary structure of human placental 5'-nucleotidase and identification of the glycolipid anchor in the mature form

A cDNA was cloned coding for human placental 5'-nucleotidase. The 3547-bp cDNA contains an open reading frame that encodes a 574-residue polypeptide with calculated size of 63 375 Da. The NH2-terminal 26 residues comprise a signal peptide, which is followed by the NH2-terminal sequence of the purified protein. four potential N-linked glycosylation sites are found in the molecule, accounting for a larger mass of the mature form (71 kDa). The predicted structure contains a hydrophobic amino acid sequence at the COOH terminus, a possible signal for the post-translational modification by glycophospholipid. To confirm this possibility, we tried to isolate and characterize the membrane-anchoring domain of 5'-nucleotidase. BrCN-cleaved fragments of the protein were extracted with hexane and subjected to HPLC, resulting in purification of a single component of 2.3 kDa. Chemical analyses revealed that the purified fragment contains the tetradecapeptide Lys-Val-Ile-Tyr-Pro-Ala-Val-Glu-Gly-Arg-Ile-Lys-Phe-Ser, ethanolamine, glucosamine, mannose, inositol, palmitic acid, and stearic acid. The peptide sequence determined is identified at positions 510-523 in the primary structure deduced from the cDNA sequence, which predicts a further extension to position 548, containing the hydrophobic amino acid sequence. Thus, it is concluded that the mature 5'-nucleotidase lacks the predicted COOH-terminal peptide extension (524-548), which has been replaced by the glycophospholipid functioning as the membrane anchor of 5'-nucleotidase.     

The primary structure of human Rieske iron-sulfur protein of mitochondrial cytochrome bc1 complex deduced from cDNA analysis

We isolated a cDNA encoding human Rieske Fe-S protein of mitochondrial cytochrome bc1 complex from a fibroblast cDNA library by colony hybridization. The cDNA contains the nucleotide sequence encoding all of the amino acids (274 residues) comprising the putative precursor to the protein. Based on the known amino acid sequence of bovine Rieske Fe-S protein, the N-terminal extension sequence is presumed to be composed of 78 amino acids with a molecular weight of 8053. The mature protein consists of the same number of amino acid residues as that of its rat and bovine counterparts, having a homology of about 92% with the latter.