Identification of preferred substrate sequences of microbial transglutaminase from Streptomyces mobaraensis using a phage-displayed peptide library

Microbial transglutaminase (TGase) from Streptomyces mobaraensis (MTG) has been used in many industrial applications because it effectively catalyzes the formation of covalent cross-linking between glutamine residues in various substrate proteins and lysine residues or primary amines. To better understand the sequence preference around the reactive glutamine residue by this enzymatic reaction, we screened preferred peptide sequences using a phage-displayed random peptide library. Most of the peptides identified contained a consensus sequence, which was different from those previously found for mammalian TGases. Of these, most sequences had a specific reactivity toward MTG when produced as a fusion protein with glutathione-S-transferase. Furthermore, the representative sequence was found to be reactive even in the peptide form. The amino acid residues in the sequence critical for the reactivity were further analyzed, and the possible interaction with the enzyme has been discussed in this paper.     

A novel transglutaminase substrate from Streptomyces mobaraensis inhibiting papain-like cysteine proteases

Transglutaminase from Streptomyces mobaraensis is an enzyme of unknown function that cross-links proteins to high molecular weight aggregates. Previously, we characterized two intrinsic transglutaminase substrates with inactivating activities against subtilisin and dispase. This report now describes a novel substrate that inhibits papain, bromelain, and trypsin. Papain was the most sensitive protease; thus, the protein was designated Streptomyces papain inhibitor (SPI). To avoid transglutaminase-mediated glutamine deamidation during culture, SPI was produced by Streptomyces mobaraensis at various growth temperatures. The best results were achieved by culturing for 30-50 h at 42 degrees C, which yielded high SPI concentrations and negligibly small amounts of mature transglutaminase. Transglutaminasespecific biotinylation displayed largely unmodified glutamine and lysine residues. In contrast, purified SPI from the 28 degrees C culture lost the potential to be cross-linked, but exhibited higher inhibitory activity as indicated by a significantly lower Ki (60 nM vs. 140 nM). Despite similarities in molecular mass (12 kDa) and high thermostability, SPI exhibits clear differences in comparison with all members of the wellknown family of Streptomyces subtilisin inhibitors. The neutral protein (pI of 7.3) shares sequence homology with a putative protein from Streptomyces lavendulae, whose conformation is most likely stabilized by two disulfide bridges. However, cysteine residues are not localized in the typical regions of subtilisin inhibitors. SPI and the formerly characterized dispase-inactivating substrate are unique proteins of distinct Streptomycetes such as Streptomyces mobaraensis. Along with the subtilisin inhibitory protein, they could play a crucial role in the defense of vulnerable protein layers that are solidified by transglutaminase.     

Activated transglutaminase from Streptomyces mobaraensis is processed by a tripeptidyl aminopeptidase in the final step.

Transglutaminase (TGase) from Streptomyces mobaraensis is secreted as a precursor protein which is completely activated by the endoprotease TAMEP, a member of the M4 protease family [Zotzel, J., Keller, P. & Fuchsbauer, H.-L. (2003) Eur. J. Biochem. 270, 3214-3222]. In contrast with the mature enzyme, TAMEP-activated TGase exhibits an additional N-terminal tetrapeptide (Phe-Arg-Ala-Pro) suggesting truncation, at least, by a second protease. We have now isolated from the culture broth of submerged colonies a tripeptidyl aminopeptidase (SM-TAP) that is able to remove the remaining tetrapeptide. The 53-kDa peptidase was purified by ion-exchange and phenyl-Sepharose chromatography and subsequently characterized. Its proteolytic activity was highest against chromophoric tripeptides at pH 7 in the presence of 2 mm CaCl2. EDTA and EGTA (10 mm) both diminished the proteolytic activity by half. Complete inhibition was only achieved with 1 mm phenylmethanesulfonyl fluoride, suggesting that SM-TAP is a serine protease. Alignment of the N-terminal sequence confirmed its close relation to the Streptomyces TAPs. That removal of Phe-Arg-Ala-Pro from TAMEP-activated TGase by SM-TAP occurs in a single step was confirmed by experiments using various TGase fragments and synthetic peptides. SM-TAP was also capable of generating the mature N-terminus by cleavage of RAP-TGase. However, AP-TGase remained unchanged. As SM-TAP activity against chromophoric amino acids such as Pro-pNA or Phe-pNA could not be detected, the tetrapeptide of TAMEP-activated TGase must be removed without formation of an intermediate.     

Screening for improved activity of a transglutaminase from Streptomyces mobaraensis created by a novel rational mutagenesis and random mutagenesis

Microbial transglutaminase (MTG) has been used extensively in academic research and the food industries through its cross-linking or posttranslational modification of proteins. Two enzyme engineering approaches were applied to improve MTG activity. One is a novel method of rational mutagenesis, called water-accessible surface hot-space region-oriented mutagenesis (WASH-ROM). One hundred and fifty-one point mutations were selected at 40 residues, bearing high solvent-accessibility surface area, within a 15?Å space from the active site Cys64. Among them, 32 mutants showed higher specific activity than the wild type. The other is a random mutagenesis of the whole region of the MTG gene, coupled with a new plate assay screening system, using Corynebacterium Expression System CORYNEX®. This in vivo system allowed us to readily distinguish the change in enzymatic activity by monitoring the intensity of enzymatic reaction-derived color zones surrounding recombinant cells. From the library of 24,000 mutants, ten were finally selected as beneficial mutants exhibiting higher specific activity than the wild type. Furthermore, we found that Ser199Ala mutant with additional N-terminal tetrapeptide showed the highest specific activity (1.7 times higher than the wild type). These various beneficial positions leading to increased specific activity of MTG were identified to achieve further enzyme improvements.     

Illuminating structure and acyl donor sites of a physiological transglutaminase substrate from Streptomyces mobaraensis

Transglutaminase from Streptomyces mobaraensis (MTG) has become a powerful tool to covalently and highly specifically link functional amines to glutamine donor sites of therapeutic proteins. However, details regarding the mechanism of substrate recognition and interaction of the enzyme with proteinaceous substrates still remain mostly elusive. We have determined the crystal structure of the Streptomyces papain inhibitory protein (SPI_p), a substrate of MTG, to study the influence of various substrate amino acids on positioning glutamine to the active site of MTG. SPI_p exhibits a rigid, thermo‐resistant double‐psi‐beta‐barrel fold that is stabilized by two cysteine bridges. Incorporation of biotin cadaverine identified Gln‐6 as the only amine acceptor site on SPI_p accessible for MTG. Substitution of Lys‐7 demonstrated that small and hydrophobic residues in close proximity to Gln‐6 favor MTG‐mediated modification and are likely to facilitate introduction of the substrate into the front vestibule of MTG. Moreover, exchange of various surface residues of SPI_p for arginine and glutamate/aspartate outside the glutamine donor region influences the efficiency of modification by MTG. These results suggest the occurrence of charged contact areas between MTG and the acyl donor substrates beyond the front vestibule, and pave the way for protein engineering approaches to improve the properties of artificial MTG‐substrates used in biomedical applications.     

The transglutaminase activating metalloprotease inhibitor from Streptomyces mobaraensis is a glutamine and lysine donor substrate of the intrinsic transglutaminase

Transglutaminase (TGase) from Streptomyces mobaraensis is an extra-cellular enzyme that cross-links proteins to high molecular weight aggregates. Screening for intrinsic substrates now revealed the dual Streptomyces subtilisin inhibitor-like inhibitor Streptomyces subtilisin and transglutaminase activating metalloprotease (TAMEP) inhibitor (SSTI), equally directed against subtilisin and the TGase activating metalloprotease TAMEP, is both a glutamine and a lysine donor protein. Reactivity of glutamines is lost during culture, most likely by TGase mediated deamidation, and, accordingly, cross-linking only occurred if SSTI from early cultures was used. Interestingly, release of buried endo-glutamines by the lipoamino acid N-lauroylsarcosine could restore SSTI reactivity. Formation of lipoamino acids by Streptomycetes suggests such compounds could also modulate in vivo TGase mediated SSTI cross-linking.     

微生物转谷氨酰胺酶的生产菌种诱变和发酵生产分析

对本研究室从土壤分离得到的使霉菌(Streptomyces sp.)WZFF．W-12菌株的斜面孢子预培养处于初萌发状态后,以亚硝基胍(NTG)进行诱变育种试验,并根据诱变处理后菌落的某些形态变化状况与产酶能力相结合的特征,初步判断产酶性能,挑选高酶活菌株,再经过初筛和复筛,获得一性能良好的产酶突变菌株WZFF.W-12.var MN-35,转谷氨酰酶活达0．53U／mL,比原始菌株提高了1．2倍。然后在摇瓶条件下,对其发酵过程中的主要培养基组成及各种培养条件对菌体生长和产酶的影响作用进行了研究,结果表明该菌株发酵生产转谷氨酰酶的适宜破源为可溶性淀粉 葡萄糖,氮源是多价胨外加少量的酵母膏,优化工艺条件为种龄时间24h、接种量10％、初始以值6．5、温度30℃和搅拌速度200r／min,产酶能力显著提高,用小型生化反应器可以稳定生产2.0U／mL以上的酶产品。     

Purification and characterization of a novel aminoacylase from Streptomyces mobaraensis

A novel aminoacylase was purified to homogeneity from culture broth of Streptomyces mobaraensis, as evidenced by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE). The enzyme was a monomer with an approximate molecular mass of 100 kDa. The purified enzyme was inhibited by the presence of 1,10-phenanthroline and activated by the addition of Co2+. It was stable at temperatures of up to 60 degrees C for 1 h at pH 7.2. It showed broad substrate specificity to N-acetylated L-amino acids. It catalyzed the hydrolysis of the amide bonds of various N-acetylated L-amino acids, except for Nepsilon-acetyl-L-lysine and N-acetyl-L-proline. Hydrolysis of N-acetyl-L-methionine and N-acetyl-L-histidine followed Michaelis-Menten kinetics with K(m) values of 1.3+/-0.1 mM and 2.7+/-0.1 mM respectively. The enzyme also catalyzed the deacetylation of 7-aminocephalosporanic acid (7-ACA) and cephalosporin C. Moreover, feruloylamino acids and L-lysine derivatives of ferulic acid derivatives were synthesized in an aqueous buffer using the enzyme.     

Peptidyl linkers for protein heterodimerization catalyzed by microbial transglutaminase

Specific peptidyl linkers that result in the heterodimerization of functional proteins, which is catalyzed by microbial transglutaminase from Streptomyces mobaraensis (MTG), were generated based on a ribonuclease S-peptide using site-directed mutagenesis. The peptidyl linkers designated as Lys-tag and Gln-tag were designed to possess sole reactive Lys or Gln residue that was amenable for selective Lys-Gln cross-linkage of different proteins. Green fluorescent protein variants, ECFP and EYFP, were employed as model proteins, and those Lys- and Gln-tags were fused to the N-termini of ECFP and EYFP, respectively. As a result, we succeeded in solely obtaining the ECFP-EYFP heterodimer without forming multiply cross-linked byproducts. It was found that the reactivity of peptidyl linkers varied according to the type of amino acid to be replaced. Peptidyl linkers with a basic amino acid (Arg) exhibited the highest reactivity in the cross-linking reaction, suggesting the cationic residue substrate preference of MTG. Kinetic analysis utilizing fluorescent resonance energy transfer (FRET), that is only observed upon the heterodimeric ECFP-EYFP conjugation, revealed that the amino acid replacement contributed to the acceleration of cross-linking reactions by increasing catalytic turnover (k(cat)), rather than substrate binding affinity (K(m)). Finally, using a ribonuclease S-protein, the manipulation of enzymatic protein cross-linking based on specific S-peptide:S-protein interactions was explored. Since newly designed Lys- and Gln-tags retained binding affinities to the S-protein, the heterodimerization was perfectly restrained by wrapping them with the S-protein. The results suggest the possibility of limited protein conjugation by tuning steric hindrance against the MTG. Tailoring enzymatic posttranslational modifications with either engineering peptidyl substrates or by taking specific peptide-protein interactions into consideration may facilitate the development of a new sequential protein conjugation method for the preparation of multifunctional protein.     

Transglutaminase from Streptomyces mobaraensis is activated by an endogenous metalloprotease.

Streptomyces mobaraensis secretes a Ca2+-independent transglutaminase (TGase) that is activated by removing an N-terminal peptide from a precursor protein during submerged culture in a complex medium [Pasternack, R., Dorsch, S., Otterbach, J. T., Robenek, I. R., Wolf, S. & Fuchsbauer, H.-L. (1998) Eur. J. Biochem. 257, 570-576]. However, an activating protease could not be identified, probably because of the presence of a 14-kDa protein (P14) belonging to the Streptomyces subtilisin inhibitor family. In contrast, if the microorganism was allowed to grow on a minimal medium, several soluble proteases were extracted, among them the TGase-activating protease (TAMEP). TAMEP was purified by sequential chromatography on DEAE- and Arg-Sepharose and used to determine the cleavage site of TGase. It was clearly shown that the peptide bond between Phe(-4) and Ser(-5) was hydrolyzed, indicating that at least one additional peptidase is necessary to complete TGase processing, even if TAMEP cleavage was sufficient to obtain total activity. Sequence analysis from the N-terminus of TAMEP revealed the close relationship to a zinc endo-protease from S. griseus. The S. griseus protease differs from other members of the M4 protease family, such as thermolysin, in that it may be inhibited by the Streptomyces subtilisin inhibitor. P14 likewise inhibits TAMEP in approximately equimolar concentrations, suggesting its important role in regulating TGase activity.     

N-terminal glycine-specific protein conjugation catalyzed by microbial transglutaminase

Here, we report the N-terminal glycine (Gly) residue of a target protein can be a candidate primary amine for site-specific protein conjugation catalyzed by microbial transglutaminase (MTG) from Streptomyces mobaraensis. Gly5-enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) (EGFP with five additional Gly residues at its N-terminus) was cross-linked with Myc-dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) (DHFR with the myc epitope sequence at its N-terminus) to yield DHFR-EGFP heterodimers. The reactivities of additional peptidyl linkers were investigated and the results obtained suggested that at least three additional Gly residues at the N-terminus were required to yield the EGFP-DHFR heterodimeric form. Site-directed mutagenesis analysis revealed marked preference of MTG for amino acids adjacent to the N-terminal Gly residue involved in the protein conjugation. In addition, peptide-protein conjugation was demonstrated by MTG-catalyzed N-terminal Gly-specific modification of a target protein with the myc epitope peptide.     

产耐高温谷氨酰胺转胺酶菌株的快速筛选方法

目的:采用亚硝基胍(NTG)诱变结合96孔板高通量筛选方法筛选产耐高温谷氨酰胺转胺酶(MTG)的茂原链霉菌(Streptomyces mobaraensis)。方法:通过优化96孔板高通量测定MTG活性的方法、确定筛选温度和时间,建立了产耐高温MTG菌株的快速筛选方法;通过优化NTG诱变条件建立了筛选突变库;通过96孔板高通量初筛、摇瓶复筛获得了产耐高温MTG的突变株12-82,并通过摇瓶发酵对12-82所产MTG进行热稳定性分析。结果:采用2mg/ml NTG、p H8.0、60min的诱变条件获得突变株,将突变株的发酵上清液于70℃水浴7.5min,再在37℃空气浴、反应10min的条件下测定MTG活性,从5 200株突变株中筛选出5株产耐高温MTG的突变株,其中突变株12-82在50℃水浴60min以及70℃水浴1.5min的酶活残留率均比出发株高出近20%,且80℃保温2min仍有11.9%的酶活残留率。结论:利用NTG诱变结合96孔板高通量筛选的方法筛选到5株所产MTG热稳定性相对较高的突变株,其中突变株12-82在50℃、70℃和80℃的酶活残留率均有10%~20%的提高。这为高温食品加工领域所需耐高温MTG生产菌株的高效筛选提供了可行性方案。     

Cartilage fucoproteins with sites for cross-linking by transglutaminase

Slices of various types of cartilage were incubated with either L-[6-3H]fucose or [1,4-3H(N)]putrescine. Homogenization of the slices and fractionation of the homogenates showed for both labels that an insoluble collagenase-resistant fraction had the highest specific activity (dpm/mg dry weight). Examination of an exhaustive proteolytic digest of this insoluble fraction by ion-exchange high performance liquid chromatography showed the presence of gamma-glutamyl[3H]putrescine. Chromatography of solubilized [3H]fucoprotein fractions showed the presence of several low molecular weight peaks, as well as high molecular weight material. Incubation of [3H]fucoprotein extracts with transglutaminase increased the high molecular weight peaks and decreased the low molecular weight ones. Incubation of the cartilage slices with L-[3H]fucose plus 0.5 mM dansylcadaverine, an inhibitor of transglutaminase, caused a decrease in the insoluble and high molecular weight fraction relative to the low molecular weight peaks. It is hypothesized that this is due to inhibition of cross-link formation between fucoprotein components of the cartilage which are transglutaminase substrates. One major low molecular weight peak, which labels with both fucose and putrescine, corresponds in size with the 15,000 subunit of collagen III aminopropeptide, which is known to be a substrate for transglutaminase.     

The pro-peptide of Streptomyces mobaraensis transglutaminase functions in cis and in trans to mediate efficient secretion of active enzyme from methylotrophic yeasts

Transglutaminase (TGase) from the actinomycete Streptomyces mobaraensis is a useful enzyme in the food industry, and development of an efficient production system for it would be desirable. Herein we report secretion of TGase in an enzymatically active form by methylotrophic yeasts as expression hosts. Secretory production of active TGase required a pro-peptide from TGase. When an artificial Kex2-endopeptidase recognition site was placed between the pro-peptide and mature TGase, secretion and in vitro maturation of TGase depended on Kex2-dependent cleavage. Unexpectedly, coexpression of unlinked pro-peptide with mature TGase yielded efficient secretion of the active enzyme. These results indicate that the pro-peptide from TGase functions not only in an intramolecular but also in an intermolecular manner. Site-directed mutagenesis of putative N-glycosylation sites increased the productivity of the active TGase further. A recombinant Candida boidinii strain was found to secrete active TGase up to 1.83 U/ml (about 90 mg/l) after 119 h of cultivation.     

Further studies on the site-specific protein modification by microbial transglutaminase

A guinea pig liver transglutaminase (G-TGase)-mediated procedure for the site-specific modification of chimeric proteins was recently reported. Here, an alternative method with advantages over the recent approach is described. This protocol utilizes a microbial transglutaminase (M-TGase) instead of the G-TGase as the catalyst. M-TGase, which has rather broad structural requirements as compared to the G-TGase, tends to catalyze an acyl transfer reaction between the gamma-carboxamide group of a intact protein-bound glutamine residue and various primary amines. To demonstrate the applicability of the M-TGase-catalyzed protein modification in a drug delivery system, we have utilized recombinant human interleukin 2 (rhIL-2) as the target protein and two synthetic alkylamine derivatives of poly(ethyleneglycol) (PEG12; MW 12 kDa) and galactose-terminated triantennary glycosides ((Gal)(3))) as the modifiers. For the M-TGase-catalyzed reaction with PEG12 and (Gal)(3), 1 mol of alkylamine was incorporated per mole of rhIL-2, respectively. Peptide mapping of (Gal)(3)-modified rhIL-2 ((Gal)(3)-rhIL-2) by liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (LC-ESI/MS) suggested that the Gln74 residue in rhIL-2 was site specifically modified with (Gal)(3). The PEG12-rhIL-2 and (Gal)(3)-rhIL-2 conjugates retained full bioactivity relative to the unmodified rhIL-2. In pharmacokinetic studies, PEG12-rhIL-2 was eliminated more slowly from the circulation than rhIL-2, whereas (Gal)(3)-rhIL-2 accumulated in the liver via hepatic asialoglycoprotein receptor binding. The results of this study expand the applicability of the TGase-catalyzed methodology for the preparation of protein conjugates for clinical use.     

Depletion of cathepsin D by transglutaminase 2 through protein cross-linking promotes cell survival

Transglutaminase 2 (TGase 2) promotes nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) activity through depletion of the inhibitory subunit of NF-κB (I-κBα) via protein cross-linking, leading to resolution of inflammation. Increased expression of TGase 2 contributes to inflammatory disease pathogenesis via constitutive NF-κB activation. Conversely, TGase 2 inhibition often reverses inflammation in animal models. The role of TGase 2 in apoptosis remains less clear, as both pro- and anti-apoptotic functions of TGase 2 have been demonstrated under different experimental conditions. Apoptosis is intact in a TGase 2 knock out mouse (TGase2^?/?), which is phenotypically normal. However, upon exposure to tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α-induced apoptotic stress, mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) from TGase2^?/? mice were more sensitive to cell death than MEFs from wild-type (TGase 2^+/+) mice. In the current study, to explore the role of TGase 2 in apoptosis, TGase 2-binding proteins were identified by LC/MS. TGase 2 was found to associate with cathepsin D (CTSD). Binding of TGase 2 to CTSD resulted in the depletion of CTSD via cross-linking in vitro as well as in MEFs, leading to decreased levels of apoptosis. Furthermore, cytoplasmic CTSD levels were higher in MEFs from TGase 2^?/? mice than in those from TGase 2^+/+ mice, as were caspase 3 activation and poly (ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) processes. These results suggest that TGase 2, while not previously implicated as a major regulatory factor in apoptosis, may regulate the balance between cell survival and cell death through the modulation of CTSD levels.     

Enhancement of Streptomyces transglutaminase activity and pro-peptide cleavage efficiency by introducing linker peptide in the C-terminus of the pro-peptide

Streptomyces transglutaminase (TGase) has been widely used in food, pharmaceutical and textile industries. Streptomyces TGase is naturally synthesized as zymogen (pro-TGase), which is then processed to produce active enzyme by removing its N-terminal pro-peptide. Although the pro-peptide is essential for TGase folding and secretion, few studies have been reported on improving the properties of TGase by pro-peptide engineering. In this study, we developed a new approach to improve the properties of TGase based on pro-peptide engineering. When the α-helix^37G?42S in pro-peptide was substituted with three glycines and three alanines respectively, the mutants exhibited higher specific activity and the efficiency of pro-peptide cleavage was enhanced. To further improve the properties of TGase, relevant mutations were constructed by introducing linker peptides in the C-terminus of the pro-peptide. Mutants with GS (GGGGS) and PT (PTPPTTPT) linker peptide exhibited 1.28 fold and 1.5 fold higher specific activity than the wild-type enzyme, respectively. This new method could be used to improve the properties of TGase by pro-peptide modification, which is a promising technology for creating unique TGase with various beneficial properties.     

赖氨酸酰化酶的重组表达及其催化合成ε-月桂酰-L-赖氨酸

来源于链霉菌的赖氨酸酰化酶Sm-ELA能催化赖氨酸和月桂酸在水相中合成月桂酰赖氨酸,避免了采用化学合成法所必需的高温和有机溶剂条件,是一种节能、环境友好的替代方法。构建了过表达链霉菌赖氨酸酰化酶基因的重组质粒pET28a-SmELA和pTrcOmpXK₁₂₂SmELA,分别实现了该酶在大肠杆菌胞内和细胞表面的活性表达。比较两种不同表达方式的效果后,将重组酶应用于催化合成月桂酰赖氨酸的反应中,结果显示,在赖氨酸浓度为50 mmol/L,月桂酸浓度为10 mmol/L时,反应24 h,月桂酸转化率最高达到31.1%。     

微生物来源的谷氨酰胺转氨酶(mTG)介导的单一定点修饰的PEG IFN-α2a(英文)

PEG修饰被认为是改善重组蛋白药物特性的最有效手段,包括增加蛋白质药物在体内的血浆半衰期,降低免疫原性和抗原性。目前典型的PEG修饰手段为将PEG连接至蛋白质的游离氨基,包括赖氨酸和N-末端,但这种连接缺乏选择性,产物为混合物,活性及工艺稳定性差,难以控制。酶法PEG化修饰能有效克服上述缺点,其中谷氨酰胺转氨酶(TGase)可以作为PEG化定点修饰用酶。文中选择重组人干扰素α2a(IFNα2a)进行酶法修饰反应,通过计算机模拟预测IFNα2a可以在第101位Gln特异性定点修饰。将IFNα2a与40 kDa的Y型PEG在微生物来源的谷氨酰胺转氨酶(mTG)催化下进行定点PEG化修饰。结果显示,mTG可以介导IFNα2a特异性位点Gln的单一定点PEG修饰,产生分子量为58 495.6 Da的PEG-Gln101-IFNα2a分子。圆二色谱结果显示,PEG-Gln101-IFNα2a与未修饰的IFNα2a具有相同的二级结构。SD大鼠药代结果显示,与IFNα2a相比,PEG-Gln101-IFNα2a能有效提高药代动力学参数,强于已上市PEGIFNα2a-PEGASYS?。     

Tissue transglutaminase serves as an inhibitor of apoptosis by cross-linking caspase 3 in thapsigargin-treated cells

Thapsigargin (THG) is an inhibitor of the endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase that induces caspase 3 activation and apoptosis in HCT116 cells through a Bax-dependent pathway. In Bax-deficient HCT116 cells, however, THG specifically generates two additional species of caspase 3, termed p40 and p64, with molecular masses of approximately 40 and 64 kDa, respectively, through unknown mechanisms. Here, we report that the Ca2+-dependent protein cross-linking enzyme tissue transglutaminase (tTGase) is involved in THG-induced p40 and p64 formation by catalyzing caspase 3 cross-linking reactions, thereby inactivating caspase 3 and apoptosis in Bax-deficient cells. Overexpression of tTGase increases p40 and p64 in THG-treated cells, and purified tTGase catalyzes procaspase 3 cross-linking in vitro. Inhibition of tTGase activity by either the tTGase inhibitor monodansylcadaverine or short-hairpin RNA reduces the cross-linked species p40 and p64 and restores caspase 3 activation in response to THG treatment. Moreover, prolonged exposure to THG results in a decrease in protein levels of XIAP and cIAP-1, which is subsequently followed by an increase in tTGase protein expression and activity. Expression of cytosolic Smac sensitizes Bax-deficient cells to THG-induced apoptosis; however, this effect is diminished by coexpression of tTGase. Taken together, these results suggest a novel role for tTGase as a new type of caspase 3 inhibitor in THG-mediated apoptosis.