Isolation and characterization of cyanogen bromide peptides from the collagen of bovine articular cartilage

Significant amounts of native collagen can be extracted from bovine articular cartilage after removal of the acid mucopolysaccharides by controlled proteolysis. The fraction thus solubilized upon denaturation gives rise to three identical alpha chains. Cleavage of these chains with CNBr generated nine peptides, all of which contain glycine as one-third of their total amino acid residues. Two of the smaller peptides CB-1 and CB-2 contain partially hydroxylated proline. A similar CNBr digest of intact cartilage also gives a series of peptides identical with those obtained from the soluble cartilage collagen. The absence of cross-linking peptides, the fact that only few beta components are seen in articular cartilage collagen and the similarity in peptide pattern between the two collagen fractions investigated, suggests that this collagen is stabilized by a different cross-linking mechanism, possibly involving an association with the tissue proteoglycans.     

The identity of a cyanogen bromide fragment of bovine dentin collagen containing the site of an intermolecular cross-link.

A peptide fraction isolated from a cyanogen bromide digest of bovine dentin collagen had a molecular weight of 46000. Its size and amino acid composition indicated that it could not consist of peptides derived from the cleavage of a single alpha chain. On reduction with tritiated sodium borohydride, radioactivity was incorporated primarily into 5, 5'-dihydroxylysinonorleucine without degradation at the peptide backbone. Periodate cleavage of the reduced or nonreduced peptide fraction generated one fragment of molecular weight 28000 and one of 18000 completely accounting for the size of the parent peptide. On amino acid analysis the constituent single-chain peptides were determined to be alpha2CB4 and alpha1CB6. Both peptides isolated after periodate oxidation of the tritiated borohydride reduced cross-link peptide were found to contain (3H)hydroxynorvaline. These data show that some hydroxylysine of alpha2CB4, a helical region peptide, was present in aldehyde form and could act as the aldehyde donor icross-link, Schiff's base formation. The only cross-linkage of this alpha2CB4 acting as an aldehyde donor peptide to alpha1CB6 would be a helical region to helical region bond, perhaps accounting for the unusual stability and low solubility of dentin collagen.     

Covalent structure of collagen: amino acid sequence of cyanogen bromide peptides from the amino-terminal segment of type III collagen of human liver

Human liver type III collagen was prepared by limited pepsin digestion, differential salt precipitation, and carboxymethylcellulose chromatography. Cyanogen bromide digestion of purified type III collagen chains yielded nine distinct peptides. Three peptides, alpha1(III)-CB3, alpha1(III)-CB7, and alpha1(III)-CB6, were isolated by carboxymethylcellulose chromatography and Sephadex G-50 SF gel filtration. Automated Edman degradation together with selective hydroxylamine cleavage and chymotrypsin and trypsin digestion enabled determination of their complete amino acid sequence. Compared with type I collagen, the data show tentative homology of alpha1(III)-CB3 with alpha1(I)-CB1, alpha1(I)-CB2, and alpha1(I)-CB4; alpha1(III)-CB7 with alpha1(I)-CB5; and alpha1(III)-CB6 with the amino-terminal portion of alpha1(I)-CB8. Close interspecies homology was found between the sequences presented here with 90 residues of alpha1(III)-CB3 and 26 of alpha1(III)-CB8 of calf aorta. The present study establishes the amino acid sequence of 229 residues near the amino terminus or nearly one-quarter of the type III collagen chains. The disaccharide, Glc-Gal, was convalently bound to hydroxylysine at a position corresponding to the same location in the alpha1(I) chain.     

Analysis of cyanogen bromide peptides of type I collagen from a patient with lethal osteogenesis imperfecta.

The CNBr peptides of type I collagen from bone of a patient with lethal osteogenesis imperfecta and age-matched controls were isolated by molecular-sieve chromatography and their amino acid compositions were determined. No differences were found between the compositions of the peptides from the patient and those from the controls, except for an increase in the degree of hydroxylation of lysine in all peptides from the patient. Type I collagen CNBr peptides from chick-embryo skin [Barnes, Constable Morton & Kodicek (1971) Biochem. J. 125, 925--928] and guinea-pig scar tissue [Shuttleworth, Forrest & Jackson (1975) Biochim. Biophys. Acta 379, 207--216] also have an increased degree of hydroxylation of lysine with an otherwise normal amino acid composition, and it was believed that this could be an embryonic form of collagen. As a similar collagen was present in the bones of the patient studied, it seems possible that the same 'embryonic' collagen is synthesized during development, in repair process and also in genetic disorders of collagen metabolism.     

Covalent structure of collagen. Amino acid sequence of an arthritogenic cyanogen bromide peptide from type II collagen of bovine cartilage

Bovine articular type II collagen was prepared by limited pepsin digestion, differential salt fractionation and carboxymethylcellulose chromatography. Cyanogen bromide digestion of purified type II collagen alpha chains yielded twelve distinct peptides designated CB1-12. The peptide alpha 1(II)-CB11 was isolated by carboxymethylcellulose chromatography and Sephadex G-75S gel filtration. Automated Edman degradation together with chymotrypsin, thermolysin and trypsin digestion enabled identification of its complete amino acid sequence. Compared with type I and type III collagen, the data show similarity with alpha 1(I)-CB8 and alpha 1(III)-CB6-1-8-10-2 peptides, respectively. The peptide is located within residues 124-402 of the alpha 1(II) collagen chain and with its identification, now extends the known amino acid sequence of bovine type II cartilage collagen to 660 amino acid residues including alpha 1(II)-CB1-2-6-12-11-8-10 (partial). This corresponds to alpha 1(I)-CB0-1-2-4-5-8-3-7 (partial; 1-660) and alpha 1(III)-CB3A-3B-3C-7-6-1-8-10-2-4-5 (partial; 1-660) of bovine alpha 1(I) and alpha 1(III) collagen chains.     

Analysis of collagen cyanogen bromide peptides using electrophoresis in continuous concave gradient polyacrylamide gels.

A rapid and simple spectrophotometric method is described for the estimation of microgram quantities of glycosaminoglycans following the formation of soluble complexes with alcian blue dye. The method is based on the different absorption spectra of the dye and dye-glycosaminoglycan complexes. No heating, centrifugation, lengthy equilibration, or sophisticated instrumentation which hamper other methods are required. Samples are mixed with freshly prepared dye solution and absorbance readings at 480 nm are compared to an appropriate standard curve. Albumin and individual monosaccharides do not interfere with the assay but high concentrations of chloride ion do. The method is suitable for the estimation of total glycosaminoglycan levels in biological fluids such as urine and blood.     

Aldehyde content and cross-linking of type III collagen.

Three phosphorylated dinucleosides designated HS1, HS2, and HS3, isolated from the water-mould $\text{Achlya}$, were shown to significantly inhibit ribonucleotide reductase activity from $\text{Achlya}$. All three compounds decreased CDP reduction in fungal extracts by 50% at concentrations of 0.1mM. At the same concentration HS3 also inhibited partially purified CDP reductase from Chinese hamster ovary cells by at least 80% but showed only 10% inhibition with enzyme from $\text{E.}\text{coli}$. ADP reductase activity from $\text{Achlya}$ was inhibited 50% by both HS1 and HS3 at 0.1mM. HS2 however, showed no inhibitory effect on purine reduction. The levels of ribonucleotide reductase during the asexual growth cycle of $\text{Achlya}$ correlated with thymidine uptake into DNA and with the synthesis of HS compounds.     

Quantitation of type I and III collagens using electrophoresis of alpha chains and cyanogen bromide peptides

The methods of quantitating the relative amounts of type I and III collagens in samples containing crosslinked collagen chains were evaluated using electrophoresis of alpha chains and cyanogen bromide peptides. The densitometry areas of the alpha I(I) chains from type I collagen and the alpha I(III) chains from type III collagen were reduced because of the failure of the crosslinked chains to dissociate. However, the ratios of the unit densitometry areas of these chains (area of chain/micrograms type I or III collagen loaded) were constant for type I and III collagens prepared from the same samples of tissue. A calibration factor, which was the same for dermis and mitral valve, was derived to convert the densitometry area ratios to the weight ratios of type I to III collagens. In contrast, the densitometry areas of the alpha I(I) CB8 (type I collagen marker) and the alpha I(III) CB5 (type III collagen marker) were not reduced by crosslinked collagen chains. A calibration factor was also derived to convert the ratios of the densitometry areas of the marker peptides to weight ratios of type I to type III collagens. Almost identical results were obtained when electrophoresis of alpha chains and of cyanogen bromide peptides was used with these calibration factors to quantitate the relative amounts of type I and III collagens in tissue extracts which contained different amounts of crosslinked chains.     

The isolation and characterization of the cyanogen bromide peptides from the B chain of human collagen.

Cleavage of the collagen B chain with cyanogen bromide yields nine peptides which have been isolated and characterized with regard to molecular weight and amino acid composition. The peptides are recovered in equimolar quantities and account for the full amino acid complement of the chain as isolated following limited pepsin digestion of human placental tissue. These data thus confirm the unique composition of the chain and further indicate that the chain has been isolated in essentially pure form. The total number of amino acid residues (1018) observed in the cyanogen bromide peptides of the B chain indicate that it is comparable in length to the previously characterized collagen alpha chains. Thus, the apparent larger size of the B chain noted in previous studies may possibly be attributed to the relatively large quantities of hydroxylysine-linked carbohydrate, but more likely to the increased numbers of large hydrophobic amino acids in the B chain. Although the cyanogen bromide peptide pattern obtained in studies on the B chain serves to differentiate this chain from other known chains, some possible homologies between the B chain peptides and peptides derived from the alpha chains of type I, II, and III collagens are noted.