Characterization of papain-like isoenzymes from latex of Asclepias curassavica by molecular biology validated by proteomic approach

Effect of Organic Solvents on the Activity, Stability and Secondary Structure of asclepain cI, Using FTIR and Molecular Dynamics Simulations

The present study aims at understanding the effect of organic solvents on the specific proteolytic activity and operational stability of asclepain cI in aqueous-organic media, using correlations between geometrical and structural parameters of asclepain cI. These correlations were determined by molecular dynamics (MD) simulations and the secondary structure of the enzyme validated by Fourier-transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Asclepain cI exhibited significantly higher catalytic potential in 29 of the 42 aqueous-organic media tested, composed by 0.1 mM TRIS hydrochloride buffer pH 8 (TCB) and an organic solvent, than in buffer alone. Asclepain cI in water-organic miscible systems showed high FTIR spectral similarity with that obtained in TCB, while in immiscible systems the enzyme acquired different secondary structures than in buffer. Among the conditions studied, asclepain cI showed the highest catalytic potential in 50% v/v ethyl acetate in TCB. According to MD simulations, that medium elicited solvation and flexibility changes around the active center of asclepain cI and conducted to a new secondary structure with the active center preserved. These results provide valuable insights into the elucidation of the molecular mechanism of asclepain cI tolerance to organic solvents and pave the way for its future application for the synthesis of peptides in aqueous-organic media.

Understanding Cysteine Reactivity in Protein Environments with Electric Fields

The role cysteine residues play in proteins is mediated by their protonation state, whereby the thiolate form of the side chain is highly reactive while the thiol form is more inert. However, the pKa of cysteine residues is hard to predict as it can differ widely from its reference value in solution, an effect that is accentuated by local effects in the heterogeneous protein environment. Here, we present a new approach to the prediction of cysteine reactivity based on electric field calculations at the thiol/thiolate group. We validated our approach by predicting the protonation state of cysteine residues in different protein environments (in the active site, at the protein surface, and buried within the protein interior), including Cys-25 in papaya protease omega, which was proven problematic for the more traditional constant pH molecular dynamics (MD) technique. We predict pKa shifts consistent with experimental observations, and the decomposition of the electric fields into contributions from molecular fragments provides a direct handle to rationalize local pH and pKa effects in proteins without introducing parameters other than those of the force field used for MD simulations.

Production of Plant Proteases and New Biotechnological Applications: An Updated Review

An updated review of emerging plant proteases with potential biotechnological application is presented. Plant proteases show comparable or even greater performance than animal or microbial proteases for by-product valorization through hydrolysis for, for example, cheese whey, bird feathers, collagen, keratinous materials, gelatin, fish protein, and soy protein. Active biopeptides can be obtained as high added value products, which have shown numerous beneficial effects on human health. Plant proteases can also be used for wastewater treatment. The production of new plant proteases is encouraged for the following advantages: low cost of isolation using simple procedures, remarkable stability over a wide range of operating conditions (temperature, pH, salinity, and organic solvents), substantial affinity to a broad variety of substrates, and possibility of immobilization. Vegetable proteases have enormous application potential for the valorization of industrial waste and its conversion into products with high added value through low-cost processes.

Lysosome and proteasome pathways are distributed in laticifers of Euphorbia helioscopia L

At present, the lysosome pathway (LP) and proteasome pathway (PP) are known as major clearance systems in eukaryotic cells. The laticifer, a secretory tissue, degrades some cytoplasm during development. In this study, we investigated the distribution of LP and PP in non-articulated laticifers of Euphorbia helioscopia L. Electron microscopy revealed that, plastids, mitochondria and some cyotsol were degraded in the late development laticifers, where there were numerous vesicles originated from dicytosomes. Accordingly, some key proteins in LP and PP were detected in E. helioscopia latex using isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ) proteomics. Further immunohistochemistry analysis revealed that the clathrin heavy chain (CHC) belonging to LP and the ubiquitin-mediated proteasome degradation increases gradually as the laticifer develops. Immuno-electron microscopy revealed that the cysteine protease, CHC and AP-2 complex subunit beta-1 belonging to LP were mainly distributed in vesicles deriving from dicytosomes, which we called lysosome-like vesicles. Ubiquitin was widely distributed in the cytosol, and proteasome activity was significantly reduced when various concentrations of the inhibitor MG132 were added to the latex total protein. We hypothesize that LP and PP are distributed in E. helioscopia laticifers; and it was speculated that LP and PP might be involved in the degradation of organelles and some cytoplasmic matrix in E. helioscopia laticifers.

Biochemical and MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrometric Characterization of a Novel Native and Recombinant Cystine Knot Miniprotein from Solanum tuberosum subsp. andigenum cv. Churqueña

Cystine-knot miniproteins (CKMPs) are an intriguing group of cysteine-rich molecules that combine the characteristics of proteins and peptides. Typically, CKMPs are fewer than 50 residues in length and share a characteristic knotted scaffold characterized by the presence of three intramolecular disulfide bonds that form the singular knotted structure. The knot scaffold confers on these proteins remarkable chemical, thermal, and proteolytic stability. Recently, CKMPs have emerged as a novel class of natural molecules with interesting pharmacological properties. In the present work, a novel cystine-knot metallocarboxypeptidase inhibitor (chuPCI) was isolated from tubers of Solanum tuberosum, subsp. andigenum cv. Churqueña. Our results demonstrated that chuPCI is a member of the A/B-type family of metallocarboxypeptidases inhibitors. chuPCI was expressed and characterized by a combination of biochemical and mass spectrometric techniques. Direct comparison of the MALDI-TOF mass spectra for the native and recombinant molecules allowed us to confirm the presence of four different forms of chuPCI in the tubers. The majority of such forms have a molecular weight of 4309 Da and contain a cyclized Gln in the N-terminus. The other three forms are derived from N-terminal and/or C-terminal proteolytic cleavages. Taken together, our results contribute to increase the current repertoire of natural CKMPs.

Molecular cloning and characterization of procirsin, an active aspartic protease precursor from Cirsium vulgare (Asteraceae)

Typical aspartic proteinases from plants of the Astereaceae family like cardosins and cyprosins are well-known milk-clotting enzymes. Their effectiveness in cheesemaking has encouraged several studies on other Astereaceae plant species for identification of new vegetable rennets. Here we report on the cloning, expression and characterization of a novel aspartic proteinase precursor from the flowers of Cirsium vulgare (Savi) Ten. The isolated cDNA encoded a protein product with 509 amino acids, termed cirsin, with the characteristic primary structure organization of plant typical aspartic proteinases. The pro form of cirsin was expressed in Escherichia coli and shown to be active without autocatalytically cleaving its pro domain. This contrasts with the acid-triggered autoactivation by pro-segment removal described for several recombinant plant typical aspartic proteinases. Recombinant procirsin displayed all typical proteolytic features of aspartic proteinases as optimum acidic pH, inhibition by pepstatin, cleavage between hydrophobic amino acids and strict dependence on two catalytic Asp residues for activity. Procirsin also displayed a high specificity towards κ-casein and milk-clotting activity, suggesting it might be an effective vegetable rennet. The findings herein described provide additional evidences for the existence of different structural arrangements among plant typical aspartic proteinases.

Biochemical characterization, cDNA cloning, and molecular modeling of araujiain aII, a papain-like cysteine protease from Araujia angustifolia latex

Araujiain aII, the protease with highest specific activity purified from latex of Araujia angustifolia (Apocynaceae), shows optimum proteolytic activity at alkaline pH, and it is completely inhibited by the irreversible inhibitor of cysteine proteases trans-epoxysucciny-L: -leucyl-amido(4-guanidino) butane. It exhibits esterolytic activity on several N-α-Cbz-amino acid p-nitrophenyl esters with a preference for Gln, Ala, and Gly derivatives. Kinetic enzymatic assays were performed with the thiol proteinase substrate p-Glu-Phe-Leu-p-nitroanilide (K (m) = 0.18 ± 0.03 mM, k (cat) = 1.078 ± 0.055 s(-1), k (cat)/K (m) = 5.99 ± 0.57 s(-1) mM(-l)). The enzyme has a pI value above 9.3 and a molecular mass of 23.528 kDa determined by mass spectrometry. cDNA of the peptidase was obtained by reverse transcription-PCR starting from total RNA isolated from latex. The deduced amino acid sequence was confirmed by peptide mass fingerprinting analysis. The N-terminus of the mature protein was determined by automated sequencing using Edman's degradation and compared with the sequence deduced from cDNA. The full araujiain aII sequence was thus obtained with a total of 213 amino acid residues. The peptidase, as well as other Apocynaceae latex peptidases, is a member of the subfamily C1A of cysteine proteases. The enzyme belongs to the alpha + beta class of proteins, with two disulfide bridges (Cys22-Cys63 and Cys56-Cys95) in the alpha domain, and another one (Cys150-Cys201) in the beta domain, as was suggested by molecular modeling.

Exploring applications of procerain b, a novel protease from Calotropis procera, and characterization by N-terminal sequencing as well as peptide mass fingerprinting

Procerain B is a novel cysteine protease isolated from Calotropis procera by our group and published recently. We have further characterized the enzyme by N-terminal sequencing and peptide mass fingerprinting. Procerain B showed maximum sequence similarity (80%) with Asclepain. Moreover, the characteristic VDWR motif of cysteine proteases is present in procerain B. The N-terminal and peptide mass fingerprinting analysis showed a distinct nature of the enzyme. Various applications of the enzyme were also evaluated. Procerain B is very effective in milk-clotting and may be a potential candidate for this process in the cheese industry. Additionally, the enzyme has potential application as dietary supplement to aid digestion. Effects of various metal ions on milk-clotting activity were also studied. The milk-clotting activity was increased in case of few metals while others have a negative effect. It is worth mentioning that the easy availability of plant material and simple purification method makes industrial production of the enzyme feasible. A protease with easy purification and suitable properties for application is always desired.

Purification and characterization of a cysteine endopeptidase from Vasconcellea quercifolia A. St.-Hil. latex displaying high substrate specificity

A new proteolytic preparation from Vasconcellea quercifolia ("oak leaved papaya") latex containing several cysteine endopeptidases with high proteolytic activity has been obtained. The specific activity of the new enzymatic preparation (VQ) was higher than that of Carica papaya latex. VQ was able to coagulate milk and to hydrolyze caseins and then could be used to produce cheeses and/or casein hydrolysates. Ion exchange chromatography of VQ allowed the isolation of a new protease, named quercifoliain I, homogeneous when analyzed by SDS-PAGE, IEF and MALDI-TOF-MS. Molecular mass was 24195 Da, and its isoelectric point was >9.3. The N-terminal sequence was determined (YPESVDWRQ). Insulin B-chain cleavage showed higher specificity than that of papain and was restricted to glycyl and alanyl residues at P1' position. The tryptic peptide mass fingerprint of quercifoliain I analyzed with the MASCOT search tool did not find a match with papain or any other plant cysteine proteases.