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- Abrahamson, Magnus, et al.
(author)
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Isolation of six cysteine proteinase inhibitors from human urine. Their physicochemical and enzyme kinetic properties and concentrations in biological fluids
- 1986
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In: Journal of Biological Chemistry. - 1083-351X. ; 261:24, s. 11282-11289
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Six cysteine proteinase inhibitors were isolated from human urine by affinity chromatography on insolubilized carboxymethylpapain followed by ion-exchange chromatography and immunosorption. Physicochemical and immunochemical measurements identified one as cystatin A, one as cystatin B, one as cystatin C, one as cystatin S, and one as low molecular weight kininogen. The sixth inhibitor displayed immunochemical cross-reactivity with salivary cystatin S but had a different pI (6.85 versus 4.68) and a different (blocked) N-terminal amino acid. This inhibitor was tentatively designated cystatin SU. The isolated inhibitors accounted for nearly all of the cysteine proteinase inhibitory activity of the urinary pool used as starting material. The enzyme inhibitory properties of the inhibitors were investigated by measuring inhibition and rate constants for their interactions with papain and human cathepsin B. Antisera raised against the inhibitors were used in immunochemical determinations of their concentrations in several biological fluids. The combined enzyme kinetic and concentration data showed that several of the inhibitors have the capacity to play physiologically important roles as cysteine proteinase inhibitors in many biological fluids. Cystatin C had the highest molar concentration of the inhibitors in seminal plasma, cerebrospinal fluid, and milk; cystatin S in saliva and tears; and kininogen in blood plasma, synovial fluid, and amniotic fluid.
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- Falkenberg, Cecilia, et al.
(author)
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alpha 1-Microglobulin destroys the proteinase inhibitory activity of alpha 1-inhibitor-3 by complex formation
- 1995
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In: Journal of Biological Chemistry. - 1083-351X. ; 270:9, s. 4478-4483
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The immunoregulatory plasma protein alpha 1-microglobulin (alpha 1-m) and the proteinase inhibitor alpha 1-inhibitor-3 (alpha 1I3) form a complex in rat plasma. In the present work, it was demonstrated that the alpha 1I3.alpha 1-m complex has no inhibitory activity, the bait region was not cleaved by low amounts of proteinases, and it was unable to covalently incorporate proteinases. The results also indicated that the thiolester bond of the alpha 1I3.alpha 1-m complex was broken. The alpha 1I3.alpha 1-m complex was cleared from the circulation much faster than native alpha 1I3, with a half-life of approximately 7 min. Structurally, however, the alpha 1I3.alpha 1-m complex was similar to native alpha 1I3 rather than alpha 1I3 cleaved by proteinases. It is speculated that the role of alpha 1-m is to destroy the function of alpha 1I3 by blocking the bait region and breaking the thiolester and causing its physical elimination by rapid clearing from the blood circulation. It is also possible that the formation of complexes between alpha 1-m and alpha 1I3 may serve as a mean to regulate the function of alpha 1-m since its complex with alpha 1I3 is taken up rapidly by cellular receptors for alpha-macroglobulins.
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3. |
- Klionsky, Daniel J., et al.
(author)
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Guidelines for the use and interpretation of assays for monitoring autophagy
- 2012
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In: Autophagy. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1554-8635 .- 1554-8627. ; 8:4, s. 445-544
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In 2008 we published the first set of guidelines for standardizing research in autophagy. Since then, research on this topic has continued to accelerate, and many new scientists have entered the field. Our knowledge base and relevant new technologies have also been expanding. Accordingly, it is important to update these guidelines for monitoring autophagy in different organisms. Various reviews have described the range of assays that have been used for this purpose. Nevertheless, there continues to be confusion regarding acceptable methods to measure autophagy, especially in multicellular eukaryotes. A key point that needs to be emphasized is that there is a difference between measurements that monitor the numbers or volume of autophagic elements (e.g., autophagosomes or autolysosomes) at any stage of the autophagic process vs. those that measure flux through the autophagy pathway (i.e., the complete process); thus, a block in macroautophagy that results in autophagosome accumulation needs to be differentiated from stimuli that result in increased autophagic activity, defined as increased autophagy induction coupled with increased delivery to, and degradation within, lysosomes (in most higher eukaryotes and some protists such as Dictyostelium) or the vacuole (in plants and fungi). In other words, it is especially important that investigators new to the field understand that the appearance of more autophagosomes does not necessarily equate with more autophagy. In fact, in many cases, autophagosomes accumulate because of a block in trafficking to lysosomes without a concomitant change in autophagosome biogenesis, whereas an increase in autolysosomes may reflect a reduction in degradative activity. Here, we present a set of guidelines for the selection and interpretation of methods for use by investigators who aim to examine macroautophagy and related processes, as well as for reviewers who need to provide realistic and reasonable critiques of papers that are focused on these processes. These guidelines are not meant to be a formulaic set of rules, because the appropriate assays depend in part on the question being asked and the system being used. In addition, we emphasize that no individual assay is guaranteed to be the most appropriate one in every situation, and we strongly recommend the use of multiple assays to monitor autophagy. In these guidelines, we consider these various methods of assessing autophagy and what information can, or cannot, be obtained from them. Finally, by discussing the merits and limits of particular autophagy assays, we hope to encourage technical innovation in the field.
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5. |
- Salvesen, Guy, et al.
(author)
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Human low-Mr kininogen contains three copies of a cystatin sequence that are divergent in structure and in inhibitory activity for cysteine proteinases.
- 1986
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In: Biochemical Journal. - 0264-6021. ; 234:2, s. 429-434
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We point out that human low-Mr kininogen contains three cystatin-like sequences, rather than two, as had previously been thought. The protein was purified by affinity chromatography on carboxymethyl-papain-Sepharose, and subjected to limited proteolysis by trypsin and chymotrypsin. Fragments were isolated, and three corresponding to the individual cystatin-like domains were identified. By comparison with the known amino acid sequence of the protein they were numbered 1 to 3 from the N-terminus. Domain 1 was not found to have any inhibitory activity for cysteine proteinases, which is consistent with the absence of residues that are highly conserved in inhibitors of the cystatin superfamily, and have previously been suggested to be essential for activity. Domain 2 was a good inhibitor of chicken calpain, and also papain and cathepsin L. Domain 3 showed negligible inhibition of calpain, but inhibited papain and cathepsin L strongly. The probable arrangement of disulphide bonds in the heavy chain of low-Mr kininogen is deduced from the homology with the cystatins and other evidence contained in the present paper.
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6. |
- Stoka, Veronika, et al.
(author)
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Lysosomal protease pathways to apoptosis - Cleavage of Bid, not pro-caspases, is the most likely route
- 2001
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In: Journal of Biological Chemistry. - 1083-351X. ; 276:5, s. 3149-3157
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- We investigated the mechanism of lysosome-mediated cell death using purified recombinant pro-apoptotic proteins, and cell-free extracts from the human neuronal progenitor cell line NT2, Potential effectors were either isolated lysosomes or purified lysosomal proteases. Purified lysosomal cathepsins B, H, K, L, S, and X or an extract of mouse lysosomes did not directly activate either recombinant caspase zymogens or caspase zymogens present in an NT2 cytosolic extract to any significant extent. In contrast, a cathepsin L-related protease from the protozoan parasite Trypanosana cruzi, cruzipain, showed a measurable caspase activation rate. This demonstrated that members of the papain family can directly activate caspases but that mammalian lysosomal members of this family may have been negatively selected for caspase activation to prevent inappropriate induction of apoptosis, Given the lack of evidence for a direct role in caspase activation by lysosomal proteases, we hypothesized that an indirect mode of caspase activation may involve the Bcl-2 family member Bid. In support of this, Bid was cleaved in the presence of lysosomal extracts, at a site six residues downstream from that seen for pathways involving capase 8, Incubation of mitochondria with Bid that had been cleaved by lysosomal extracts resulted in cytochrome c release. Thus, cleavage of Bid may represent a mechanism by which proteases that have leaked from the lysosomes can precipitate cytochrome c release and subsequent caspase activation. This is supported by the finding that cytosolic extracts from mice ablated in the bid gene are impaired in the ability to release cytochrome c in response to lysosome extracts, Together these data suggest that Bid represents a sensor that allows cells to initiate apoptosis in response to widespread adventitious proteolysis.
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