Succinyl trialanine p-nitroanilide-hydrolytic enzymes in human serum. Partial purification and characterization

The levels of two kinds of elastase-like enzymes, which are able to hydrolyze an artificial elastase substrate, suc-(Ala)3-pNA, but unable to hydrolyse a naturally occurring substrate, elastin, were found to be elevated in the sera of patients suffering from hepatobiliary disorders and other diseases accompanied by tissue damage. One of the enzymes was characterized as being sensitive to a chelating reagent, EDTA, and partially inactivated enzyme activity was recovered by the addition of calcium ion. The apparent molecular weight estimated by Sepharose 4B column chromatography showed a wide distribution from 200,000 to approximately 10,000,000, but all components were converted to a molecular weight of about 200,000 by treatment with 2% Triton X-100. The activity of this enzyme was partially reduced by the addition of anti-beta-lipoprotein antibody, showing that a part of the enzyme was affiliated with low and very low density lipoproteins in the serum. The level of the other enzyme was rarely increased in the sera of patients suffering from severe hepatic disorders. This enzyme was resistant to EDTA, and the apparent molecular weight was 150,000-200,000. It appeared not to be associated with lipid component. Both enzymes were assumed to be tissue-derived enzymes, because their activities were very low in the sera of healthy persons.     

Synthesis of carbocyclic nucleosides bearing a cyclopropane ring.

A carbocyclic cyclopropane fused nucleoside, 9-(c-4-hydroxymethylbicyclo[3.1.0]hex-r-2-yl)-9H-adenine, has been efficiently synthesized from 2-azabicyclo-[2.2.1]hex-5-en-3-one (ABH) in 6 steps, namely cyclopropanation, -reductive amide cleavage (RAC) reaction and adenine ring construction.     

Synthesis of purine bases having a di(hydroxymethyl)cyclopentenyl group by means of high-pressure reaction and their anti-HIV activity.

The 1'- and 5'-hydroxymethyl derivatives of carbovir and related purine derivatives were synthesized from 5-hydroxymethylcyclopentadiene. The anti-HIV activity evaluation of these compounds has revealed that 9-(c-4,t-5-dihydroxymethylcyclopent-2-en-r-1-yl)-9H-adenine is a prospective chemotherapeutic agent against AIDS.     

Dependence of removal of sperm-specific proteins from Xenopus sperm nuclei on the phosphorylation state of nucleoplasmin

In Xenopus laevis , nucleoplasmin from fully grown oocytes is not highly phosphorylated, but is more extensively phosphorylated during oocyte maturation to retain this state until mid-blastula transition. Incubation of demembranated sperm with nucleoplasmin from oocytes or mature eggs revealed that egg nucleoplasmin is twice as potent as oocyte nucleoplasmin in removing sperm-specific basic proteins from chromatin (protamine-removing activity: PRA). Dephosphorylation of egg nucleoplasmin by alkaline phosphatase induced a remarkable decline of PRA in nucleoplasmin. Treatment of oocyte nucleoplasmin with cdc2 protein kinase induced an increase of the extent of phosphorylation, but to a level lower than that exhibited by egg nucleoplasmin, suggesting the involvement of other unspecified kinase(s) in phosphorylating nucleoplasmin during oocyte maturation. Incubation of sperm with cdc2 kinase induced selective phosphorylation of sperm-specific basic proteins, accompanied by their enhanced removal from sperm chromatin upon exposure to high-salt solutions. These results suggest that removal of sperm-specific basic proteins from sperm chromatin in fertilized eggs is facilitated by phosphorylation of both nucleoplasmin and sperm-specific basic proteins.