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R B Pepinsky

Publications and source records attributed to R B Pepinsky.

84 records · Page 5Linked to original sources

Structure and processing of the p2 region of avian sarcoma and leukemia virus gag precursor polyproteins.

We have purified two low-molecular-weight polypeptides from the Prague C strain of Rous sarcoma virus and have identified these as products of the gag precursor Pr76 by protein sequencing and by amino acid analysis. Both polypeptides are derived from a stretch of 22 amino acids within Pr76 that separates p19 and p10. We refer to this region as p2. Together the two cleavage products form the entire p2 region. The junctions of p19 with the amino-terminal fragment of p2 and of p10 with the carboxy-terminal fragment of p2 define two new processing sites within the gag precursor, Tyr-155-His-156 and Gly-177-Ser-178. Both polypeptides are major cleavage products of Pr76 that occur in Prague C Rous sarcoma virus at an estimated 1,000 copies per virion. They also are prominent components of avian myeloblastosis virus. The combination of gel filtration and reverse-phase high-pressure liquid chromatography, which was used for the isolation of the two fragments of p2, resolved over a dozen other low-molecular-weight polypeptides from avian sarcoma and leukemia viruses that previously were undetected. This technique thus should serve as a useful procedure for further characterization of viral components.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Primary structure of p19 species of avian sarcoma and leukemia viruses.

The internal structural proteins of avian sarcoma and leukemia viruses are derived from a precursor polypeptide that is the product of the viral gag gene. The N-terminal domain of the precursor gives rise to p19, a protein that interacts with the lipid envelope of the virus and that may also interact with viral RNA. The C terminus of p19 from the Prague C strain of Rous sarcoma virus was previously assigned to a tyrosine residue 175 amino acids from the N terminus. We have used metabolic labeling and carboxypeptidase digestion to show that the C terminus of p19 is actually tyrosine 155. This implies the existence of a sixth gag protein 22 amino acids in length and located between p19 and p10 on the gag precursor. The p19 species of some recombinant avian sarcoma viruses and of the defective endogenous virus derived from the ev-1 locus migrate on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis as if they were about 4,000 daltons smaller than p19. We have elucidated the structure of these forms, called p19 beta, by analysis of the proteins and determination of the DNA sequence of the p19 region of the gag gene from ev-1 and ev-2. Esterification of carboxyl groups completely suppressed the differences in migration of p19 and p19 beta. Peptide mapping showed the altered mobility to be determined by sequences in the C-terminal cyanogen bromide fragment of the proteins. We conclude from the DNA sequence that a single glutamate-lysine alteration is responsible for the altered electrophoretic mobility.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Fine-structure analyses of lipid-protein and protein-protein interactions of gag protein p19 of the avian sarcoma and leukemia viruses by cyanogen bromide mapping.

In avian sarcoma and leukemia viruses, the gag protein p19 functions structurally as a matrix protein, connecting internal components with the viral envelope. We have used a combination of in situ cross-linking and peptide mapping to localize within p19 the regions responsible for two major interactions in this complex, p19 with lipid and p19 with p19. Lipid-protein cross-links were localized near the amino terminus within the first 35 amino acids of the polypeptide. Homotypic protein-protein disulfide bridges were found to originate from near the carboxy terminus of p19, from cysteine residues at amino acids 111 and 153. These results suggest that p19 is divided into domains with distinct functions. The peptide maps constructed for p19, and for the related proteins p23 in avian sarcoma and leukemia viruses and p19 beta in recombinant avian sarcoma viruses, should serve as useful tools for other types of studies involving these proteins.

Amino Acids↗

Localization of lipid-protein and protein-protein interactions within the murine retrovirus gag precursor by a novel peptide-mapping technique.

In HTG2 hamster cells infected with the replication-defective Gazdar murine sarcoma virus only immature virus particles are formed, with the uncleaved gag precursor Pr65 as the only major protein in the virion. We have investigated the structure of these particles by using in situ cross-linking followed by chemical and enzymatic cleavages of Pr65 to localize sites of lipid-protein and protein-protein interactions. Lipid-protein cross-links were localized within a 10-kDa fragment in the p15 region of Pr65. Homotypic protein-protein cross-links between Pr65 units were localized within the p15 regions and also within the p10 regions of Pr65. Similar data for processed gag proteins in Rauscher murine leukemia virus, a prototype of a mature C-type virus, suggest that these interactions of the gag precursor are not altered during maturation. To identify the sites of cross-linking within Pr65, we have developed a two-dimensional peptide mapping technique that is based on nearest neighbor analysis of fragments released by cyanogen bromide treatment of partial cleavage products in gel slices. In conjunction with cross-linking, the peptide mapping technique is a powerful means for localizing specific interactions on a polypeptide backbone.

Animals↗

Purification and properties of a fifth major viral gag protein from avian sarcoma and leukemia viruses.

We have developed procedures for the purification of a 6,000-dalton protein from avian myeloblastosis virus. This protein is a major component of avian myeloblastosis virus, accounting for over 7% of total protein, and thus is equimolar with the other internal structural proteins in virions. As described in the accompanying paper (Hunter et al., J. Virol. 45:885-888, 1983), the results of N-terminal amino acid sequence analysis identify the protein as a product of the gag gene. We suggest denoting this protein as p10, according to nomenclature that is already in use for a previously identified but poorly defined low-molecular-weight protein or proteins of avian sarcoma and leukemia viruses. In virions p10 appears to be located between the core and the membrane. Several of its properties may explain why p10 has not been characterized previously. Among these are its abnormal amino acid composition, its solubility under conditions where most proteins are fixed into sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gels, and the variability in its electrophoretic migration in different avian sarcoma viruses.

Alpharetrovirus↗

Amino-terminal amino acid sequence of p10, the fifth major gag polypeptide of avian sarcoma and leukemia viruses.

We have identified p10 as a fifth gag protein of avian sarcoma and leukemia viruses. Amino-terminal protein sequencing of this polypeptide purified from the Prague C strain of Rous sarcoma virus and from avian myeloblastosis virus implies that it is encoded within a stretch of 64 amino acid residues between p19 and p27 on the gag precursor polypeptide. For p10 from the Prague C strain of Rous sarcoma virus the first 30 residues were found to be identical with the predicted amino acid sequence from the Prague C strain of Rous sarcoma virus DNA sequence, whereas for p10 from avian myeloblastosis virus the protein sequence for the same region showed two amino acid substitutions. Amino acid composition data indicate that there are no gross composition changes beyond the region sequenced. The amino terminus of p10 is located two amino acid residues past the carboxy terminus of p19, whereas its carboxy terminus probably is located immediately adjacent to the first amino acid residue of p27.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

A mouse homolog to the avian sarcoma virus src protein is a member of a protein kinase cascade.

Recent work has identified a cascade of membrane bound protein kinases in Ehrlich ascites tumor cells. These enzymes, designated PKL, PKS and PKM, are present in both Ehrlich tumor and mouse brain, but the cascade is active only in the tumor tissue. We have now purified a fourth protein kinase, PKF, that is also associated with this cascade. Protein kinase F prosphorylates PKL and is phosphorylated by PKS. The position of this kinase in the cascade is as follows, where the arrows denote phosphorylation: [Formula: see text] The phosphorylation by PKF, like phosphorylation by the other kinases, is at a tyrosine residue and causes the substrate kinase (PKL) to become active. The role of the tyrosine phosphorylation in activating these kinases is described in detail elsewhere. One result of activation of the cascade is the phosphorylation of the beta subunit of the Na+K+-ATPase, which causes inefficient Na+ pumping and is at last in part responsible for the high aerobic glycolysis of Ehrlich ascites tumor cells. By several criteria protein kinase F from Ehrlich cells is homologous to the src gene product (pp60src) from avian sarcoma viruses. Antiserum raised against PKF and sera from rabbits bearing rous sarcoma virus (RSV)-induced tumors quantitatively precipitate the same 60 kd phosphoprotein from cell lysates of three different RSV-transformed cell lines. Both proteins phosphorylate PKL and a 130 kd cytoskeletal protein (vinculin). The tryptic maps of these proteins are closely similar. Both proteins bind specifically to PKL covalently coupled to Sepharose. We used this latter observation to facilitate the purification of pp60 src from RSV-transformed cells.

Amino Acids↗

Epidermal growth factor-dependent phosphorylation of lipocortin.

Lipocortin-like proteins are a family of steroid-induced inhibitors of phospholipase activity with potential anti-inflammatory activity. Related proteins have been detected in a variety of tissues and species. The best characterized form is a protein of relative molecular mass (Mr) approximately 40,000 (40K), which is phosphorylated in vivo by protein tyrosine kinases and by protein serine-threonine kinases. It has been proposed that the phospholipase inhibitory activity of lipocortin can be regulated by its phosphorylation. In the A431 cell line, a protein of approximately 35K is phosphorylated by the protein tyrosine kinase activity of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor. Here we report that human lipocortin is phosphorylated near its amino terminus by the EGF receptor/kinase. By peptide mapping and immunological analyses, we show that lipocortin and the endogenous 35K substrate for the EGF receptor/kinase from A431 cells are the same protein.

Annexins↗

Recombinant human lipocortin 1 inhibits thromboxane release from guinea-pig isolated perfused lung.

The guinea-pig perfused isolated lung, used in conjunction with the cascade superfusion system to measure the release of thromboxane A2(TXA2), is a simple and convenient model for assessing the inhibition by glucocorticoids of eicosanoid formation. Dexamethasone inhibits the release of TXA2 from the lung when it is stimulated by agents such as RCS-RF2 of leukotrienes, but not when bradykinin or arachidonic acid are used. Using this model we have shown that the glucocorticoids suppress eicosanoid generation by cells through the induction of a family of phospholipase A2-inhibitory proteins now termed the 'lipocortins'. Recently the primary structure of one form of lipocortin has been elucidated and the human gene cloned. Lipocortin 1 is a polar monomeric protein with anti-phospholipase properties in vitro and we now report that when infused into guinea-pig lung preparations this protein has the same inhibitory profile as the glucocorticoids but with a more rapid onset of action. This is the first demonstration that eicosanoid formation can be inhibited by a recombinant phospholipase inhibitory protein applied extracellularly.

Animals↗