Actinoporins from the Sea of Japan anemone <Emphasis Type="Italic">Oulactis orientalis</Emphasis>: Isolation and partial characterization

Two cytolytic toxins (cytolysins Or-A and Or-G) were isolated from the Sea of Japan anemone Oulactis orientalis and characterized. Their purification scheme involved a hydrophobic chromatography on Polychrom-1, a gel filtration on Akrilex P-4, a cation-exchange chromatography on CM-32 cellulose, and a reverse-phase HPLC on a Nucleosil C₁₈ column. The molecular masses of Or-A and Or-G were determined by SDS-PAGE in 14% PAG to be ca. 18 kDa. The absence of Cys residues and a high content of basic amino acid residues are characteristic of their amino acid compositions. The hemolytic activities of Or-A and Or-G were found to be 295.86 and 322.58 HU/mg, respectively; these are by three orders of magnitude lower than those of sphingomyelin-inhibitable cytolysins from the tropic sea anemones. The amino acid sequences of the N-terminal fragments of Or-A and Or-G were determined to be ATFRVLAK and GAIIAGAA, respectively. Action of the cytolysins on the erythrocyte membrane is inhibited by exogenous sphingomyelin. They form ion channels in bilayer lipid membranes with the conductivity of 16, 32, and 40 pSm in 0.1 M NaCl and 168, 240, and 320 pSm in 1 M NaCl at pH 7.2. Therefore, they were attributed to the group of actinoporins.Translated from Bioorganicheskaya Khimiya, Vol. 31, No. 1, 2005, pp. 39–48.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2005 by Ilina, Monastyrnaya, Sokotun, Egorov, Nazarenko, Likhatskaya, Kozlovskaya.     

Primary structures of actinoporins from sea anemone Oulactis orientalis

Partial amino acid sequences of the actinoporins Or-A (136 aa) and Or-G (144 aa) isolated from the Sea of Japan sea anemone Oulactis orientalis were determined by sequencing the clones obtained by the amplification of genomic DNA and cDNA with specific primers to the N-terminal regions of the 0. orientalis actinoporin sequences and to the C-terminal region, which is known to be highly conservative in all the known actinoporin sequences. The complete structures of Or-A (165 aa) and Or-G (173 aa) were established by sequencing the cDNA clones obtained by the fast amplification of 3'-ends of cDNA. A comparative analysis of the amino acid sequences of the Oulactis actinoporins with those of actinoporins from tropical species revealed considerable differences in the structures of their N-terminal fragments and their membrane-binding sites. We believe that these differences could explain lower hemolytic activities of Or-A and Or-G than that of actinoporins from the tropical species.     

Primary Structures of Actinoporins from Sea Anemone <Emphasis Type="Italic">Oulactis orientalis</Emphasis>

Partial amino acid sequences of the actinoporins Or-A (136 aa) and Or-G (144 aa) isolated from the Sea of Japan sea anemone Oulactis orientalis were determined by sequencing the clones obtained by the amplification of genomic DNA and cDNA with primers specific to the N-terminal regions of the O. orientalis actinoporin sequences and to the C-terminal region, which is highly conservative in all the known actinoporin sequences. The complete structures of Or-A (165 aa) and Or-G (173 aa) were elucidated by sequencing the cDNA clones obtained by the rapid amplification of 3′-ends of cDNA. A comparative analysis of the amino acid sequences of the Oulactis actinoporins with those of actinoporins from tropical species revealed considerable differences in the structures of their N-terminal fragments and their membrane-binding sites. We believe that these differences could explain the lower hemolytic activities of Or-A and Or-G compared to those of actinoporins from the tropical species.__________Translated from Bioorganicheskaya Khimiya, Vol. 31, No. 4, 2005, pp. 357–362.Original Russian Text Copyright © 2005 by Il’ina, Monastyrnaya, Isaeva, Guzev, Rasskazov, Kozlovskaya     

Purification and partial characterization of a 19kD/pI 4.5 nucleolar phosphoprotein

Two-dimensional PAGE analysis of proteins associated with the slowly sedimenting "fibrillar" structures of HeLa nucleoli revealed a protein with a M of 19,000 and a pI of 4.5 which was highly labeled both with 32P-orthophosphate and 35S-methionine. The protein was isolated from Novikoff hepatoma nucleoli by extraction in 0.35 M NaCl and 5 mM DTT followed by chromatography in EDTA on DEAE-cellulose and Sephadex G-100. The protein was homogeneous with respect to two-dimensional PAGE, number of tryptic peptides and carboxyl terminal analysis. The protein contained an acidic/basic amino acid ratio of 2.1, 7 residues of methionine, 2 residues of cysteine, a blocked amino terminus and a carboxyl terminal lysylleucine.     

The complete amino acid sequences of ribosomal proteins L17, L27, and S9 from Bacillus stearothermophilus

The complete primary structures of proteins L17, L27 and S9 extracted from the Bacillus stearothermophilus ribosomes with 1 M NaCl and purified to homogeneity by column chromatography have been determined. The amino acid sequences of these proteins are compared to those of the homologous ribosomal proteins from Escherichia coli. The number of identical amino acid residues between the homologous proteins lies between 33-55%.     

Purification and amino acid sequence of sakacin A, a bacteriocin from Lactobacillus sake Lb706.

Sakacin A, a bacteriocin produced by Lactobacillus sake Lb706 and which inhibits the growth of Listeria monocytogenes, was purified to homogeneity by ammonium sulphate precipitation and ion-exchange, hydrophobic-interaction and reversed-phase chromatography. The complete amino acid sequence of sakacin A was determined by Edman degradation. The bacteriocin consisted of 41 amino acid residues and had a calculated M(r) of 4308.7, which is in good agreement with the value determined by mass spectrometry. The structural gene encoding sakacin A (sakA) was cloned and sequenced. The gene encoded a primary translation product of 59 amino acid residues which was cleaved between amino acids 18 and 19 to yield the active sakacin A. Sakacin A shared some sequence similarities with other bacteriocins.     

Isolation and characteristics of high molecular weight cytolysins from the sea anemone Radianthus macrodactylus

Three cytolytic toxins (RTX: RTX-A, RTX-S, and RTX-G) were isolated from the sea anemone Radianthus macrodactylus and characterized. The purification scheme involved hydrophobic chromatography on Polychrom-1, batch-chromatography on CM-23 cellulose, gel filtration on Akrilex P-4, cation-exchange chromatography on CM-32 cellulose, and HPLC on an ion-exchange Ultropac TSK CM-3SW column and a reversed-phase Silasorb C18 column. The molecular masses of RTXs (ca. 20 kDa) were determined by SDS-PAGE in a density gradient of PAG. They are highly basic polypeptides (pI of 9.8 for RTX-A and RTX-S and 10.5 for RTX-G) containing similar amino acid compositions with a high content of basic and hydrophobic residues and the absence of Cys residues. The hemolytic activities of RTX-A, RTX-S, and RTX-G were determined to be 3.5, 5.0, and 1.0 x 10(4) HU/mg, respectively. Exogenous sphingomyelin inhibits their action on the erythrocyte membrane. The N-terminal sequence of RTX-A was determined to be ALAGAIIAGAGL/KGLKI/FLIEVLGEG--V/NKVKI-.     

Partial degradation of the 18-kDa protein of the photosynthetic oxygen-evolving complex: A study of a binding site

When the NaCl extract from spinach Photosystem II particles was dialyzed against a low-salt medium, the 18-kDa protein slowly degraded to a fragment of 17 kDa. This observation suggests that a proteinase previously associated with the Photosystem II particles in a latent form was activated by dissociation with NaCl. The 18-kDa protein and the 17-kDa fragment were purified, and their N-terminal amino acid sequences and total amino acid compositions were determined. These results determined 44 amino acid residues at the N-terminal of the 18-kDa protein, and suggest that 12 amino acid residues (mostly hydrophobic) at the N-terminal were lost by the degradation. The 18-kDa protein could rebind to the NaCl-treated and 24-kDa protein-supplemented Photosystem II particles and sustain their oxygen-evolution activity in a low-Cl⁻ medium, whereas the 17-kDa fragment had lost these abilities. These observations suggest that the N-terminal region of the 18-kDa protein forms a domain which binds to Photosystem II particles.     

The amino acid sequence of two small ribosomal proteins from Bacillus stearothermophilus

The low-Mr proteins (tentatively called protein I and II) were purified from 2 M NaCl extracts of the Bacillus stearothermophilus ribosome. Their amino acid sequences have been determined from the peptides obtained by digestion with trypsin, chymotrypsin, and pepsin, and by cleavage with CNBr, using the micro-DABITC/PITC double-coupling method [FEBS Lett. (1978) 93, 205-214]. Protein I contains 56 residues and has an Mr of 6514. Protein II had 37 residues with an Mr of 4361. The amino acid sequence of protein I shows significant similarity to L32 from E. coli, whereas that of protein II is slightly, if at all, related to ribosomal protein L34 from E. coli.     

Primary structure of the tail sheath protein of bacteriophage T4 and its gene

Complete sequence determination of gene 18 encoding the tail sheath protein was carried out mainly by the Maxam-Gilbert method. Approximately 40 peptides contained in a tryptic digest and a lysyl endopeptidase digest of gp 18 were isolated by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. All the peptides were identified along the nucleotide sequence of gene 18 based on the amino acid compositions. These peptides cover 88% of the total primary structure. Furthermore, the amino acid sequences of 9 of the 40 peptides were determined by a gas-phase protein sequencer; one of them turned to be the N-terminal one. The C-terminal peptide in the tryptic digest was isolated from the unadsorbed fraction of affinity chromatography on immobilized anhydrotrypsin and the amino acid sequence was also determined. Thus, the complete primary structure of gp 18 was determined; it has 658 amino acid residues and a molecular weight of 71,160.This article was presented during the proceedings of the International Conference on Macromolecular Structure and Function, held at the National Defence Medical College, Tokorozawa, Japan, December 1985.     

Isolation of an androgen acceptor from salt extract of rat prostatic chromatin

The soluble androgen acceptor has been isolated from 0.35 M NaCl extract of rat prostatic chromatin by affinity chromatography on DNA-cellulose. The acceptor activity was assayed by interaction with 5α-dihydrotestosterone-receptor. Native DNA enhances this interaction. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of the acceptor under denaturing conditions reveals a single polypeptide of molecular weight of 14,000. Amino acid analysis shows that the acceptor protein contains a higher content of acidic amino acid residues than basic amino acid residues. In an $\text{in}\text{vitro}$ RNA synthesizing system catalyzed by rat RNA polymerase II, addition of the acceptor stimulates RNA synthesis. Based on incorporation of [γ-³²P]ATP and [γ-³²P]GTP, the stimulation by the acceptor is mainly on the initiation of RNA chains.     

Biochemical characterization of a lectin from Delonix regia seeds

A lectin from Delonix regia (DRL) seeds was purified by gel filtration on Sephadex G-100 followed by ion-exchange chromatography on diethylaminoethyl-Sepharose and reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography on a C18 column. Hemagglutinating activity was monitored using rat erythrocytes. DRL showed no specificity for human erythrocytes of ABO blood groups. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) revealed a single protein in the presence of 0.1 M of dithiothreitol (DTT) and in nonreducing conditions. Native-PAGE showed that DRL is a monomer with a molecular mass of about 12 kDa, as determined by denaturing gel electrophoresis and gel filtration chromatography. An amino acid composition revealed the absence of cysteine residues, the presence of 1 mol methionine/mol protein and a high proportion of acidic amino acids and glycine. The N-terminal sequence of DRL was determined by Edman degradation, and up to 16 amino acid residues showed more than 90% homology with other lectins from the Leguminosae family. The optimal pH range for lectin activity was between pH 8.0 and 9.0, and the lectin was active up to 60°C. The lectin required Mn²⁺ for hemagglutinating activity and remained active after reduction with 0.1 M of DTT, but lost activity in the presence of 8 M of urea. Sodium metaperiodate had no effect on the activity of DRL.     

Interaction between heparan sulphate chains. I. A gel chromatographic, light-scattering and structural study of aggregating and non-aggregating chains

1. Heparan sulphate from bovine lung was fractionated with cetylpyridinium chloride. Solubilisation of complexes was accomplished by increasing concentrations of NaCl in a step-wise manner. Fractions I-IV, which were low-sulphated, contained more D-glucuronic acid than L-iduronic acid, fraction V contained equal proportions while fraction VI was L-iduronic acid-rich. 2. Gel chromatography of heparan sulphates II-IV in 0.5 M sodium acetate yielded extremely asymmetric profiles, while fractions V, VI and heparin did not. 3. Heparan sulphate IV was separated into aggregatable and non-aggregatable species by gel chromatography in 0.5 M sodium acetate. The particle/molecular weights of the two species were determined by light scattering. In 0.15 M NaCl or KCl the aggregatable chains yielded particle weights of 60 000-100 000 while the molecular weight was 20 000 (in 4.0 M guanidine HCl). Non-aggregatable chains afforded 'monomeric' values in 0.15 M NaCl or KCl. 4. Periodate oxidation of D-glucuronic acid residues in N-acetylated block regions followed by scission in alkali was used to fragment aggregating and non-aggregating heparan sulphate IV. The former chains yielded, on average, shorter oligosaccharides than did the latter. Reoxidation of the remaining D-glucuronic acid residues (adjacent to N-sulphated amino sugars) in the oligosaccharides followed by alkaline cleavage resulted in distinctly different fragmentation patterns in the two cases. The iduronate-containing oligosaccharides derived from aggregatable chains were markedly degraded into fragments ranging from glucosamine-L-iduronic acid-glucosamine-(C-3 fragment) to higher saccharides. Only higher saccharides were obtained from fragments of non-aggregatable chains. 5. It is concluded that self-associating heparan sulphates comprise both D-glucuronic acid- and L-iduronic acid-containing repeating units and that these units are arranged in an alternating or mixed fashion. These characteristics are analogous to those observed with self-associating dermatan sulphate species (Fransson, L.-A. and C?ster, L. (1979) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 582, 132-144).     

Synthesis of 2',5'-oligoadenylate by rat liver nuclear matrix protein

Nuclear matrix was prepared from unstimulated rat liver by treatment of nuclei with DNAse and 0.4 M NaCl and was further extracted with 2.0 M NaCl. Proteins were bound to poly(rI):(rC)-agarose, incubated with (alpha-32P) adenosine 5'-triphosphate and 2',5'-linked oligoadenylate was isolated from the supernatant. The substance inhibited amino acid incorporation in a reticulocyte translation system and was identified after enzymatic treatment followed by thin-layer chromatography on PEI-cellulose. The possible function of 2',5'-oligo(A) synthetase in the maturation of pre-mRNA associated with nuclear matrix is discussed.     

Purification and characterization of recombinant human interleukin-2 produced in Escherichia coli

Recombinant human interleukin-2 (rIL-2) produced in Escherichia coli was purified to apparent homogeneity by cation exchange chromatography and reverse phase high performance liquid chromatography. The amino acid composition, amino terminal amino acid sequence, and carboxyl terminal amino acid were consistent with those deduced from the cDNA sequence. Besides the molecular species with the amino terminal Ala, the purified preparation contained another species having an additional Met residue at the amino terminus corresponding to the initiation codon AUG. The molar absorption coefficient of rIL-2 was determined to be 9.58 X 10(3) M-1 cm-1 at 280nm in water. Ultracentrifugal analyses revealed that it existed as a monomeric form in 0.1 M NaCl. The apparent sedimentation coefficient (S20,w) was calculated to be 1.8 S.     

Primary structure of human plasma fibronectin. Characterization of a 31,000-dalton fragment from the COOH-terminal region containing a free sulfhydryl group and a fibrin-binding site

The 31-kDa domain of human plasma fibronectin has been completely characterized. This fragment is located at the COOH-terminal end of the molecule immediately preceding the 3-kDa interchain disulfide-containing peptide. The 31-kDa domain was obtained after trypsin digestion of fibronectin and purified by affinity chromatography on gelatin- and heparin-Sepharose columns. The fragment eluted in the heparin-unbound fraction and was further purified by DEAE-cellulose and high performance liquid chromatography. The 31-kDa fragment contained a fibrin-binding site (fibrin II site) which was only active at physiological NaCl concentrations and therefore differed from that located in the NH2-terminal domain which also bound at lower NaCl concentrations. The 31-kDa domain bound to thiopropyl-Sepharose and was shown to contain a free sulfhydryl group located at position 35 in the sequence. To determine the complete amino acid sequence of this fragment, a trypsin digestion was performed on the reduced and alkylated 31-kDa domain, and the 17 resulting peptides were isolated by high performance liquid chromatography; their amino acid compositions and amino acid sequences have been determined, and the arrangement of peptides was achieved by comparison with the sequences deduced from human and rat cDNA clones and with a related plasmic fragment from bovine fibronectin. Comparison of these three sequences showed 23 amino acid differences between human and rat fibronectin and 16 between human and bovine fibronectin. This represents a 91 and 94% homology, respectively. An interesting finding is that the 31-kDa fragment contains a deletion of 31 residues when compared to the rat cDNA sequence. This deletion appears to represent a species difference since it is due to a shorter mRNA in the case of human fibronectin.     

Isolation and characterization of a new bacteriocin,termed enterocin M,produced by environmental isolate <Emphasis Type="Italic">Enterococcus faecium</Emphasis> AL41

The new bacteriocin, termed enterocin M, produced by Enterococcus faecium AL 41 showed a wide spectrum of inhibitory activity against the indicator organisms from different sources. It was purified by (NH₄)₂SO₄ precipitation, cation-exchange chromatography and reverse phase chromatography (FPLC). The purified peptide was sequenced by N-terminal amino acid Edman degradation and a mass spectrometry analysis was performed. By combining the data obtained from amino acid sequence (39 N-terminal amino acid residues was determined) and the molecular weight (determined to be 4 628 Da) it was concluded that the purified enterocin M is a new bacteriocin, which is very similar to enterocin P. However, its molecular weight is different from enterocin P (4 701.25). Of the first 39 N-terminal residues of enterocin M, valine was found in position 20 and a lysine in position 35, while enterocin P has tryptophane residues in these positions.     

Isolation of heparin-binding growth factors from bovine, porcine and canine hearts

Fresh bovine, porcine and canine hearts were homogenized and mitogens for mesoderm-derived cells were purified in three different steps. Extraction by two different ammonium sulfate precipitations was followed by cation-exchange chromatography and by heparin-Sepharose affinity chromatography. A heparin-Sepharose fraction from heart (eluted at 1.1 M NaCl) increased mitotic activity in serum-deprived cultures of porcine aortic endothelial and smooth muscle cells, and in human fibroblasts. This mitogenic activity is potentiated by heparin and inhibited by gamma-interferon. The heart mitogenic fraction showed one double peak on HPLC at A215 and one polypeptide band on SDS/PAGE. These peaks and bands were identical to those obtained from bovine brain. The heart acidic fibroblast growth factor (aFGF) showed a positive signal in Western blots using antibodies raised against brain aFGF. Gas-phase amino acid sequencing established that the mitogens were identical to aFGF and the N-terminally truncated aFGF. Extraction in the presence of a protease inhibitor (pepstatin A) produced a higher-molecular mass form of aFGF with a blocked amino terminus. Another mitogen, eluted at 1.6 M NaCl from heparin-Sepharose, reacted with polyclonal antiserum against human recombinant basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) and showed a 66% (12 from 18 amino acids determined by gas-phase sequencing) similarity with bFGF. This polypeptide increased the mitotic activity of the same cell lines but was more potent than aFGF.     

Brain natriuretic peptide-32: N-terminal six amino acid extended form of brain natriuretic peptide identified in porcine brain

Brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) is a newly identified peptide of 26 residues, which has a remarkable homology to but is distinct from atrial natriuretic peptide. The peptide exerts natriuretic-diuretic activity as well as potent chick rectum relaxant activity. By using radioimmunoassay specific to BNP and immunoaffinity chromatography, we have isolated from porcine brain a novel peptide of 32 residues carrying a BNP structure at the C-terminus. The amino acid sequence of this peptide was determined to be: Ser-Pro-Lys-Thr-Met- Arg-Asp-Ser-Gly-Cys-Phe-Gly-Arg-Arg-Leu-Asp-Arg-Ile-Gly-Ser-Leu-Ser-Gly- Leu- Gly-Cys-Asn-Val-Leu-Arg-Arg-Tyr. This peptide is an N-terminal six amino acid extended form of BNP and henceforth is designated BNP-32. BNP and BNP-32 are found to be major forms of BNP family in porcine brain.     

Lagenin, a novel ribosome-inactivating protein with ribonucleolytic activity from bottle gourd (Lagenaria siceraria) seeds

The seeds of Lagenaria siceraria (Family Cucurbitaceae) were extracted with water and the extract was lyophilized. The lyophilized extract was chromatographed on a DEAE-cellulose column in 10 mM Tris-HCl buffer (pH 7.2). The unadsorbed fraction was applied to an Affi-gel Blue gel column previously equilibrated with the same buffer. After removal of unadsorbed materials, the adsorbed proteins were eluted with 1.5 M NaCl in the Tris-HCl buffer. After dialysis the adsorbed fraction was loaded on a CM-Sepharose CL-6B column which had been equilibrated with and was eluted with the same buffer. After elution of unadsorbed proteins, the column was eluted with a gradient of 0-1 M NaCl in 10 mM Tris-HCl buffer (pH 7.2). The fraction eluting at about 0.55 M NaCl, which represented pure ribosome inactivating protein (RIP), inhibited cell-free translation in a rabbit reticulocyte system with an IC50 of 0.21 nM and exerted ribonuclease activity on yeast tRNA with an activity of 45 U/mg. The RIP was designated lagenin. It possessed a molecular weight of 20 kDa, smaller than the range of 26-32 kDa reported for other RIPs. The N-terminal sequence of lagenin exhibited a lesser extent of similarity to those of other Cucurbitaceae RIPs, characterized by a deletion of the first three amino acid residues and a replacement of the 4th (Phe), 17th (Phe), 18th (Ile) and 22nd (Arg) residues which are invariant in other RIPs.