Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

T Murachi

Publications and source records attributed to T Murachi.

At least 145 records · Page 8Linked to original sources

Identification of a protease inhibitor from rat peritoneal macrophages as poly(ADP-ribose).

Rat peritoneal macrophages contain a chymotrypsin-like protease and its specific inhibitor, both being associated with chromatin of the cells. The inhibitor was separated from the protease by gel filtration through a Sephadex G-75 column, further treated with trypsin, DNase and RNase, and then purified successively on Sephadex G-75, Sephadex G-25, and dihydroxyboryl Bio-Gel P-60 columns. The purified inhibitor had a molecular weight in the range from 2,000 to 3,500 and an absorption maximum at 260 nm at pH 7.0. When the inhibitor was digested by snake venom phosphodiesterase, the inhibitory potency was lost, yielding 5'-AMP and 2'-(5'-phosphoribosyl)-5'-AMP as the digestion products which were identified by high pressure liquid chromatography. The inhibitory potency was neutralized specifically by anti-poly(ADP-ribose) antiserum. The profile of inhibition by the isolated inhibitor was nearly identical with that produced by authentic poly(ADP-ribose). It was therefore concluded that the inhibitor isolated was identical with poly(ADP-ribose), whose chain length ranged from 4 to 7 ADP-ribosyl units. This is the first demonstration that a intracellular protease inhibitor can be endogenous poly(ADP-ribose).

Animals↗

Application of immobilized enzymes to clinical analyses : use of co-immobilized glucose oxidase and peroxidase in column form.

Glucose oxidase from Aspergillus niger and peroxidase from horseradish were simultaneously immobilized onto alkylamine glass beads which were then packed into a 1.5 x 20 mm column and integrated in the flow system of an AutoAnalyzer I. Glucose in serum, up to 5.0 g/l, was continuously determined at a rate of 60 samples per hour. The co-immobilized enzyme column gave better sensitivity as compared with an enzyme column which contained a mixture of two kinds of individually immobilized enzymes. The enzyme column was sufficiently stable while in use for two months. The results correlated satisfactorily well with those obtained by other well established methods for glucose assay.

Blood Glucose↗

Structural studies on stem bromelain. Cyanogen bromide cleavage and amino acid sequence of carboxyl-terminal half of the molecule.

Stem bromelain was cleaved with cyanogen bromide, and the products were fractionated with and without prior maleylation and sulfitolysis. The fragments that corresponded to the carboxyl-terminal half of the molecule were isolated and nearly completely sequenced. This portion of the enzyme molecule contained one disulfide linkage. A specific cleavage at the amino peptide bonds of that cystine residue by reduction, modification into S-cyano derivatives and exposure to alkali gave important information of the amino terminal sequence. By combining the present data with the previously known partial sequence of the parent molecule, 101 amino acid residues were aligned down to the carboxyl terminus and compared with those of papain. The sequence homology between carboxyl-terminal halves of these two thiol proteases of plant origin was found to be 34.7%.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

Use of immobilized enzymes in automated clinical analysis: determination of uric acid and glucose using immobilized enzymes in column form.

We studied the use of immobilized enzymes, covalently bound to alkylaminosilane derivative of porous glass, to automated clinical analysis on uric acid and glucose in blood, serum and urine. A microcolumn with an immobilized enzyme was prepared and used in an AutoAnalyzer I continuous flow system. Uricase (EC 1.7.3.3) from Candida utilis and glucose oxidase (EC 1.1.3.4) from Aspergillus niger were immobilized for the determination of uric acid and glucose, respectively. Hydrogen peroxide produced by these oxidases was colorimetrically determined using horse-radish peroxidase (EC 1.11.1.7) and a hydrogen acceptor in solution. Sensitivity and wash charactertistics of a column with immobilized enzyme, 1.5 mm of inner diameter and up to 40 mm in length, were satisfactory at an assay speed of 50 samples per hour. The results correlated well with those obtained by other well established methods utilizing the AutoAnalyzer system. The immobilized enzymes were sufficiently stable for at least two months of 2000 tests when used repeatedly. Clinical trials proved that this method is capable of replacing the soluble enzyme method, giving reliable and reproducible results at lower cost.

Autoanalysis↗

An acid protease in human erythrocytes and its localization in the inner membrane.

The isolation of erythrocytes of high purity from human blood was achieved by a combination of the two well established methods cells in erythrocyte preparations of different purities was studied. The acid protease activity was recovered to a level comparable with the recovery of erythrocytes, while the neutral protease activity as detected by the release of acid-soluble peptides from hemoglobin or casein disappeared in proportion to the removal of white blood cells. An acid protease was solubilized from the membranes of the purified erythrocytes by the extraction with 1-butanol. The enzyme was active in a pH range from 2 to 4, and sensitive to pepstatin. It was named pH-3 protease after its pH optimum. Sealed ghosts with right-side-out membranes and inside-out vesicles with reverted membranes were prepared from the purified erythrocytes and compared with respect to pH-3 protease activity for its latency as well as its inactivation by tryptic digestion. The results obtained indicate that pH-3 protase is localized on the inner surface of erythrocyte membranes. The self-digestion experiments at pH 4 using the sealed ghosts showed higher availability to pH-3 protease of spectrin and IVa protein than the other membrane proteins, also suggesting the localization of an acid protease in the inner membranes of erythrocytes.

Endopeptidases↗

Verdohemoglobin as a substrate for proteases is applicable to assays over a wide pH range.

Verdohemoglobin, a heme-modified derivative readily obtained by ascorbic acid-coupled oxidation of oxyhemoglobin, was found to be a suitable substrate for protease with which assay can be carried out at all pH values. The advantage of verdohemoglobin over such popular substrates as alkali-and-urea-denatured hemoglobin and casein was demonstrated by a pH-profile study with Pronase E.

Catalysis↗

Increase in the susceptibility of hemoglobin to proteases upon treatment with p-mercuribenzoate.

Native human oxyhemoglobin, which has a rigid conformation resistant to proteases such as trypsin and subtilisin, could be hydrolyzed by these proteases at pH 7.0 after treatment with p-chloromercuribenzoate. The digestion curve of hemoglobin as a function of concentration of the mercurial was essentially parallel to the titration curve of hemoglobin with the mercurial, indicating that a relationship exists between susceptibility to proteases and modification of thiol groups of the protein. On the other hand, when myoglobin was used as a substrate, the degree of proteolysis did not increase after treatment with the mercurial. Circular dichroism measurements and gel-filtration experiments showed that the observed increase in susceptibility of hemoglobin to proteases was not due to a conformational change involving unfolding of alpha-helical structure, but was due to the dissociation of the tetrameric hemoglobin molecule into dimer and monomer after treatment with the mercurial.

Caseins↗

A chromatin-bound neutral protease and its inhibitor in rat peritoneal macrophages.

Rat peritoneal macrophages are known to contain a chymotrypsin-like neutral protease associated with a specific inhibitor. By homogenizing the cells in 0.25 M sucrose (pH 8.0) containing 0.5% Triton X-100, both the protease and the inhibitor were found to be localized in the nuclei, particularly in chromatin. The inhibitory factor in chromatin was then separated from the protease by hydroxylapatite gel chromatography in the presence of 2 M NaCl and 5 M urea. The inhibitor fraction obtained was deproteinized by digestion with Pronase and subsequent extraction with phenol; these treatments did not alter the inhibitory potency. The deproteinized inhibitor fraction had a UV absorption ratio, A280/A260, of 0.61, but it was resistant to digestion with various nucleases, including DNase 1, nuclease P1, and snake venom phosphodiesterase. However, when it was incubated with poly(ADP-ribose) glycohydrolase from calf thymus, the inhibitory potency was markedly decreased. An authentic poly(ADP-ribose), with a mean chain length of approximately 30 ADP-ribose units, produced significant inhibition of the neutral protease isolated from macrophage chromatin. No such inhibition was produced by DNA, single-stranded DNA, RNA, polyadenylate, polyuridylate, polycytidylate, or monomeric ADP-ribose.

Animals↗

The occurrence of an inhibitor of Ca2+-dependent neutral protease in rat liver.

The occurrence of a novel and specific inhibitor of Ca2+-dependent neutral protease in rat liver has been demonstrated. The partially purified product is a heat-stable and acid-stable protein of an approximate molecular weight of 3x10(5), and readily inactivated by tryptic digestion. The inhibition of Ca2+-dependent protease is not a result of the binding of Ca2+ by the inhibitor.

Animals↗