Purification of alpha-sarcin and an antifungal protein from Aspergillus giganteus by blue sepharose CL-6B affinity chromatography

The small molecular mass antifungal protein of Penicillium chrysogenum--a mechanism of action oriented review

The β-lactam producing filamentous fungus Penicillium chrysogenum secretes a 6.25 kDa small molecular mass antifungal protein, PAF, which has a highly stable, compact 3D structure and is effective against a wide spectrum of plant and zoo pathogenic fungi. Its precise physiological functions and mode of action need to be elucidated before considering possible biomedical, agricultural or food technological applications. According to some more recent experimental data, PAF plays an important role in the fine-tuning of conidiogenesis in Penicillium chrysogenum. PAF triggers apoptotic cell death in sensitive fungi, and cell death signaling may be transmitted through two-component systems, heterotrimeric G protein coupled signal transduction and regulatory networks as well as via alteration of the Ca(2+) -homeostasis of the cells. Possible biotechnological applications of PAF are also outlined in the review.

The reaction of cyanoacetylhydrazine with omega-bromo(4-methyl)acetophenone: synthesis of heterocyclic derivatives with antitumor activity

New approaches for the synthesis of hydrazide-hydrazone derivatives were demonstrated as well as some heterocyclizations of such derivatives to afford 1,3,4-triazine, pyridine and 1,3,4-oxadiazine derivatives. The antitumor evaluation of the newly synthesized products against three cancer cell lines, namely breast adenocarcinoma (MCF-7), non-small cell lung cancer (NCI-H460) and CNS cancer (SF-268) were recorded. Most of the synthesized compounds showed high inhibitory effects.

Analysis of Cibacron blue F3G-A interaction with therapeutic proteins by MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry

The formation of the complexes between Cibacron blue F3G-A and two therapeutic proteins, recombinant human interferon-alpha2b and recombinant human growth hormone, was investigated. The method of time-resolved limited proteolysis coupled with MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry was used. The analysis of peptide maps revealed that A(17)HR(19) and L(20)HQLAFDTYQEFEEAYIPK(38) of hGH, and R(14)TLMLLAQMR(23) and D(33)RHDFGFPQEEFGNQFQK(50) of hIFN-alpha2b, exhibit affinity to Cibacron blue F3G-A.

Peptides and proteins from fungi

The peptides and proteins secreted by fungi are reviewed in this article. They include ribosome inactivating peptides and proteins, antifungal peptides and proteins, lectins, ubiquitin-like peptides and proteins, peptides and proteins with nucleolytic activity, proteases, xylanases, cellulases, sugar oxidoreductases, laccases, invertases, trehalose phosphorylases, and various enzymes with applications in food industry, chemical production and the medical sector.

Purification and characterization of Moschatin, a novel type I ribosome-inactivating protein from the mature seeds of pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata), and preparation of its immunotoxin against human melanoma cells

A novel ribosome-inactivating protein designated Moschatin from the mature seeds of pumpkin (Cucurbita moschata) has been successively purified to homogeneity, using ammonium sulfate precipitation, CM-cellulose 52 column chromatography, Blue Sepharose CL-6B Affinity column chromatography and FPLC size-exclusion column chromatography. Moschatin is a type 1 RIP with a pI of 9.4 and molecular weight of approximately 29 kD. It is a rRNA N-glycosidase and potently blocked the protein synthesis in the rabbit reticulocyte lysate with a IC50 of 0.26 nM. Using the anti-human melanoma McAb Ng76, a novel immunotoxin Moschatin-Ng76 was prepared successfully and it efficiently inhibited the growth of targeted melanoma cells M21 with a IC50 of 0.04 nM, 1500 times lower than that of free Moschatin. The results implied that Moschatin could be used as a new potential anticancer agent.

Purification of alpha-sarcin and an antifungal protein from mold (Aspergillus giganteus) by chitin affinity chromatography

A simple method for preparation of alpha-sarcin and an antifungal protein (AFP) from mold (Aspergillus giganteus MDH 18894) has been developed. alpha-Sarcin and AFP were purified simultaneously by chitin affinity column chromatography and gel filtration. By this method, 4.5 mg of pure alpha-sarcin and 6.9 mg of pure AFP were obtained from 2 liters of culture medium. Compared with other purification methods such as ion-exchange column chromatography, this procedure was very simple and specific. The purified alpha-sarcin and AFP were homogeneous as characterized by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Both alpha-sarcin and AFP exhibited the binding activity to generated chitin. Soluble glycochitin decreased the intensity of fluorescence of alpha-sarcin and made the lambda(em)m shift from 340 to 347 nm. Titration of alpha-sarcin with N-bromosuccinimide under native conditions revealed that two tryptophans (Trps) were all located in the core part of alpha-sarcin molecule. This indicated that Trps were not involved in the binding of alpha-sarcin to chitin. Glycochitin in the culture medium increased the expression of alpha-sarcin, while it had no effect on the expression of AFP. Unlike other ligands such as Cibacron blue for the affinity purification of alpha-sarcin and AFP, glycochitin increased the nuclease activity of alpha-sarcin.

Purification and characterization of an ethylene-induced antifungal protein from leaves of guilder rose (Hydrangea macrophylla)

An ethylene-induced, chitin-binding protein (designated as HM30) from leaves of Hydrangea macrophylla was identified and purified to apparent homogeneity by chitin affinity chromatography followed by FPLC on a Superose 12 column. The molecular mass of HM30 was 30,010.0 Da determined by mass spectrometry and its isoelectric point of 8.4 was estimated by isoelectric focusing. The amino acid composition of HM30 was also determined. The initial 15 amino acid residues of the N-terminal were found to be N-S-M-E-R-V-E-E-L-R-K-K-L-Q-D by automatic Edman degradation. This chitin-binding protein showed antifungal activity toward several crop fungal pathogens. Knowledge of properties of HM30 should be useful for its potential application as a plant fungicidal agent.

A silent antifungal protein (AFP)-like gene lacking two introns in the mould Trichoderma viride

In cells of the mould Trichoderma viride, the existence of an antifungal protein (AFP)-like gene consisting of 285 bp was confirmed by Southern analysis that genomic DNA of T. viride could hybridize with the cDNA of mature AFP of Aspergillus giganteus MDH 18894. Except for the absence of two introns, the nucleotide sequence of the AFP-like gene was identical to that of the AFP gene of A. giganteus in positions 336-479, 568-649, and 706-765. The AFP-like gene could not be transcribed into its mRNA in T. viride cells as examined by RT-PCR using total RNAs of T. viride as template. Furthermore, AFP could not be detected either directly from the culture medium of T. viride or by Western analysis. However, the AFP-like gene could be actively expressed like the cDNA of AFP in Escherichia coli cell. Recombinant AFP exhibited similar antifungal activity as native AFP.

Isolation and characterization of viridin, a new 65 kDa antifungal protein from the mould Trichoderma viride

A new extracellular antifungal protein with a yield of 10 mg per liter was isolated from the culture medium of the mould Trichoderma viride. The protein, which we named viridin, was purified by carboxymethyl-cellulose cation-exchange chromatography and Superose 12 HR 10/30 high-performance liquid chromatography. Viridin, a basic protein of approximately 65 kDa as determined by SDS-PAGE, inhibits the growth of the cotton pathogen Verticillum dahliae, the IC50 being 6 microM.