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PubMed1991

Insect immunity. Isolation from a coleopteran insect of a novel inducible antibacterial peptide and of new members of the insect defensin family.

Injection of heat-killed bacteria into larvae of the large tenebrionid beetle Zophobas atratus (Insecta, Endopterygota, Coleoptera) results in the appearance in the hemolymph of a potent antibacterial activity as evidenced by a plate growth inhibition assay. We have isolated three peptides (A-C) from this immune hemolymph which probably account for most of this activity. Their primary structures were established by a combination of peptide sequencing and molecular mass determination by mass spectrometry. Peptide A, which is bactericidal against Gram-negative cells, is a 74-residue glycine-rich molecule with no sequence homology to known peptides. We propose the name coleoptericin for this novel inducible antibacterial peptide. Peptides B and C are isoforms of a 43-residue peptide which contains 6 cysteines and shows significant sequence homology to insect defensins, initially reported from dipteran insects. This peptide is active against Gram-positive bacteria. The results are discussed in connection with recent studies on inducible antibacterial peptides present in the three other major orders of the endopterygote clade of insects: the Lepidoptera, Diptera, and Hymenoptera.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Mössbauer spectroscopy of oxygenated haemoglobins.

Murine tetrameric oxyhaemoglobin and insect monomeric erythrocruorin were studied. A doublet with the Lorentz form of lines (delta EQ = 2.22 mm s-1; delta alpha-Fe = 0.27 mm s-1; gamma 1/2 = 0.29 mm s-1) was observed in the oxyhaemoglobin spectrum at 4.2 K. In the 80-170 K interval the doublet components are distorted, but at T greater than 175 K, the lines again become symmetrical. In the 175-210 K region the value of gamma 1/2 is approximately 0.42 mm s-1. The profiles of the oxyhaemoglobin spectra are not dependent on the nature of the samples (blood; whole, or in aqueous or water-glycerol solutions at different pH values), or on the rate at which the latter are frozen. The oxyerythrocruorin spectra in aqueous solution and in a water-glycerol solution at 80 K and 170 K were doublets with Lorentz lines (the delta EQ values are equal to 2.20 mm s-1 and 2.12 mm s-1, respectively). It is concluded that the characteristics of the oxyhaemoglobin spectra reflect the specific electronic and structural properties of the oxy-complex in this protein. It was found that the oxyhaemoglobin spectra are very adequately described by two doublets with equal delta and gamma 1/2 values, but with different delta EQ values and relative intensities. A model is described in which these doublets correspond to two types of hydrogen bond associated with the distal histidine (E7), involving the terminal atom of molecular oxygen and the oxygen atom bound with the haem iron, respectively.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

The fate and possible role of arylphorin during the metamorphosis of Mamestra brassicae.

1. Arylphorin, one of the storage proteins has been isolated from the hemolymph of Mamestra brassicae. 2. It has been established that Mamestra arylphorin is the most similar to manducin from among the known storage proteins of other species. 3. A rabbit polyclonal antibody has been developed against arylphorin, and its concentration changes have been determined quantitatively by ELISA in the hemolymph and fat body from the 1st day of the last larval instar to the 3rd day of the imago stage. 4. Histological sections were made on each day during the investigated period and it was shown by immunohistochemical methods that the main quantity of arylphorin was accumulated in the storage protein granules of the fat body and it could be detected even in the imaginal fat body. 5. The uptake of arylphorin by the fat body is induced by 20-hydroxyecdysone. 6. During differentiation of the imaginal cuticle arylphorin is incorporated first in the epidermal cells and it is built in the endocuticular layer of the integument thereafter.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Purification and properties of an ommochrome-binding protein from the hemolymph of the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta.

A yellow-colored protein (YCP) was isolated from the hemolymph (i.e. blood) of fifth instar wandering stage larvae of Manduca sexta. The molecular mass of YCP was 31 kDa by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Gel filtration chromatography suggested that native YCP was a monomer. The absorbance spectrum of YCP revealed maxima at 278 and 405 nm. Chromophore was released from YCP through denaturation of the protein with methanol and chloroform. In neutral solution and in acid, the released chromophore showed the absorbance characteristics of an ommochrome: ommatin D. In addition, the chromophore was sensitive to treatment with arylsulfatase as would be expected for ommatin D. The amino acid composition and the N-terminal sequence of YCP were determined. The YCP polypeptide chain was found to be glycosylated. Carbohydrate analysis suggested that Man and GlcNAc were present in a 3:1 ratio. Circular dichroism indicated that YCP consisted of 68% beta-pleated sheet with no alpha-helices being detected. An in vitro incubation of larval fat body in the presence of [35S]methionine indicated that this organ was the site of synthesis. Ommochromes arise in insects as end products of the metabolism of tryptophan. It is well-documented that ommochromes occur in both the tissues and the excreta of insects. We propose that in M. sexta, one such tryptophan metabolite is found in the hemolymph associated with a specific protein.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Isolation of maxadilan, a potent vasodilatory peptide from the salivary glands of the sand fly Lutzomyia longipalpis.

Blood feeding by the sand fly Lutzomyia longipalpis is aided by the presence of a vasodilator in its salivary glands. This novel vasodilator has been isolated by reversed-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. Ten nanograms of the vasodilator are present in the extract of a pair of sand fly salivary glands. It has 500 times the vasodilatory activity of calcitonin gene-related peptide, previously the most potent vasodilator peptide known. This novel peptide is thus called maxadilan.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1990

Insect immunity. Characterization of a Drosophila cDNA encoding a novel member of the diptericin family of immune peptides.

Drosophila shows an immune response when challenged by injection of low doses of bacteria. To date, the molecules involved in this immune reaction have remained elusive, with the exception of cecropins (4-kDa antibacterial peptides initially isolated from the moth Hyalophora cecropia) for which three closely related genes have been characterized recently. We report the molecular cloning and sequencing of a cDNA from a library of immune Drosophila which encodes a novel member of the family of diptericins (9-kDa antibacterial peptides initially isolated from the fly Phormia terranovae). Transcripts for the Drosophila diptericin are detected 2 h after injection of bacteria. They are apparently derived from a single gene mapping at position 56 A on the right arm of the second chromosome. We discuss the existence of a distant relationship between the diptericins and two other groups of anti-bacterial insect proteins, the attacins, and the sarcotoxins II.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1990

Biosynthesis of mosquito vitellogenin.

Vitellogenin (Vg), the hemolymph precursor to the major yolk protein in mosquitoes, is synthesized in the fat body of blood-fed females. Mosquito Vg consists of two subunits with Mr = 200,000 and 66,000. Here, we demonstrate that both the Vg subunits are first synthesized as a single precursor. The identity of this Vg precursor was confirmed by immunoprecipitation with subunit-specific monoclonal antibodies. In cell-free translation of fat body poly (A)+ RNA, the Vg precursor had Mr = 224,000 which increased to 240,000 in the presence of canine pancreatic microsomal membranes. A precursor with Mr = 250,000 was immunoprecipitated in microsomal fractions isolated from rat bodies. With in vitro pulse labeling, the 250-kDa precursor could be detected in homogenates of fat bodies from blood-fed mosquitoes only during the first few hours accumulation of the Vg precursor was achieved by an in vitro stimulation of Vg synthesis in previtellogenic fat bodies cultured with an insect hormone, 20-hydroxyecdysone. The 250-kDa precursor was glycosylated and to a much lesser degree phosphorylated. Treatment of fat bodies with tunicamycin yielded the precursor with Mr = 226,000 which was neither glycosylated nor phosphorylated. The reduction in molecular mass of the 250-kDa Vg precursor and of both mature Vg subunits combined was similar after digestion with endoglycosidase H, indicating that glycosylation is completed prior to cleavage of the Vg precursor. In vitro pulse-chase experiments revealed rapid proteolytic cleavage of the 250-kDa precursor to two polypeptides with Mr = 190,000 and 62,000 which transformed into mature Vg subunits of 200- and 66-kDa as the last step prior to Vg secretion. This last step in Vg processing was inhibited by an ionophore, monensin, and therefore occurred in the Golgi complex. Sulfation as an additional, previously unknown, modification of mosquito Vg was revealed by the incorporation of sodium [35S]sulfate into both Vg subunits. Since sulfation of Vg was predominantly blocked by monensin, the final maturation of Vg subunits in the Golgi complex is, at least in part, due to this modification.

Adipose Tissue↗
PubMed1990

A potent antibacterial protein in royal jelly. Purification and determination of the primary structure of royalisin.

A new potent antibacterial protein, for which we propose the name royalisin, was found in royal jelly of the honeybee Apis mellifera L. and purified to homogeneity for the first time by acid extraction, gel filtration, and reverse-phase high pressure liquid chromatography. The primary structure of royalisin was determined to consist of 51 residues, with three intramolecular disulfide linkages, having a calculated molecular mass of 5523 Da. Royalisin is an amphipathic protein, with the C-terminal half of the molecule being rich in charged amino acids; and it showed extensive sequence homology to two other antibacterial proteins, sapecin from embryonic Sarcophaga peregrina cells and phormicins from Phormia terranovae larvae. Royalisin was found to have potent antibacterial activity against Gram-positive bacteria at low concentrations, but not against Gram-negative bacteria. Royalisin may be involved in a defense system active against bacterial invasion of the honeybee.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1990

A large presecretory protein translocates both cotranslationally, using signal recognition particle and ribosome, and post-translationally, without these ribonucleoparticles, when synthesized in the presence of mammalian microsomes.

Translocation of large presecretory proteins into the mammalian endoplasmic reticulum requires the ribonucleoparticles, signal recognition particle, and ribosome and is tightly coupled to ongoing protein synthesis. We have shown previously that small presecretory proteins can translocate post-translationally in a reaction that does not require these ribonucleoparticles. We now report that one large protein, a synthetic hybrid between preprocecropin A and dihydrofolate reductase, translocates both cotranslationally (with the aid of signal recognition particle and ribosome) and post-translationally (without the involvement of these ribonucleoparticles) during its in vitro synthesis in the presence of dog pancreas microsomes. The distinction between these two modes of translocation was made possible by adding methotrexate to the translocation reaction. Methotrexate can only form a tight complex with those preprocecropin A-dihydrofolate reductase hybrid chains that have completed their synthesis and folded, but in forming this tight complex, this drug prevents translocation of the dihydrofolate reductase domain across the membrane.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1989

The chemical synthesis of cecropin D and an analog with enhanced antibacterial activity.

Cecropin D was synthesized by solid-phase methods and shown to be homogeneous and of correct composition and molecular weight. It was indistinguishable from natural cecropin D and constitutes a structure proof for this peptide. Several analogs of cecropin D were synthesized and used to draw conclusions about the structural features contributing to antibacterial activity. They included [Lys1]cecropin D, [Gln3, Leu4] cecropin D, and cecropin D-(9-37). It was concluded that a strongly basic NH2-terminal segment is a prerequisite for antibacterial activity. A hybrid analog cecropin A-(1-11) D-(12-37) was designed and predicted to have enhanced potency. It was found to be 5 to 55 times as active as cecropin D against six of the bacteria tested and was slightly more active than cecropin A. However, against Bacillus subtilis Bs11 the analog was 6 times more active than cecropin A.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMedDate not supplied

In vitro cytocidal effect of lytic peptides on several transformed mammalian cell lines.

Several types of transformed mammalian cells, derived from established cell lines, were found to be lysed in vitro by three novel lytic peptides (SB-37, SB-37*, and Shiva-1). This is in contrast with the behavior of normal cells, where the observed lytic activity of the peptides is greatly reduced. Based on experiments utilizing compounds which disrupt the cytoskeleton (colchicine and cytochalasin-D), it is surmised that alterations in the cytoskeleton of transformed cells increase their sensitivity to the cytolytic activity exerted by the peptides, primarily by causing a loss of osmotic integrity. Thus, a stable and regenerative cytoskeletal system, as that possessed by normal cells, would seem requisite to withstanding the lytic effects of the peptides.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1989

Structure of the gene for the arylphorin-type storage protein SP 2 of Bombyx mori.

Two forms of storage proteins termed "SP 1" and "SP 2", respectively, accumulate in a stage-dependent fashion in the larval hemolymph of the silkworm Bombyx mori. We have cloned and analyzed the genomic sequence encoding SP 2, an arylphorin-type storage protein. The SP 2 structural gene contains five exons spanning over 5 kilobases of chromosomal DNA. The transcription initiation site of the SP 2 gene was identified at the nucleotide level and a typical TATA box was located 30 base pairs upstream of the transcription initiation site. The 5'-flanking region of the gene contains a sequence homologous to the SV 40 enhancer "core" structure. A region homologous to the Drosophila enhancer sequence predicted for the fat body specificity of gene expression exists in the 5'-upstream region. Developmental profiles of the SP 2 mRNA and its precursor in the fat body indicate that the biosynthesis of SP 2 is developmentally regulated at the level of transcription. The exon/intron composition of the SP 2 gene is remarkably similar to that of the SP 1 gene. Moreover, the deduced primary structures of SP 1 and SP 2 exhibit nearly 30% homology, implying that two storage protein genes of the B. mori silkworm might have evolved from a common ancestor.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1989

Canavanine incorporation into the antibacterial proteins of the fly, Phormia terranovae (Diptera), and its effect on biological activity.

In response to microbial infection or mechanical injury, larvae of the fly, Phormia terranovae (Diptera), can induce de novo production of a group of antibacterial proteins including: peak I protein, diptericin A, diptericin B, diptericin C, and peak V protein. Administration of L-canavanine at the time of mechanical injury results in the incorporation of this arginine antagonist into these proteins. Canavanine replacement for arginine causes a total loss of detectable antibacterial activity for diptericin B and diptericin C, whereas diptericin A and peak V protein are severely inhibited. This loss in biological activity occurs in spite of the fact that canavanine stimulates induced protein synthesis. Analysis of the hydrolysate of diptericin A reveals that one-third of the 3 arginyl residues are replaced by canavanine. This investigation provides the first evidence that canavanine incorporation into a protein can impair its function.

Amino Acids↗
PubMed1989

cDNA and gene sequence of Manduca sexta arylphorin, an aromatic amino acid-rich larval serum protein. Homology to arthropod hemocyanins.

The serum (storage) proteins produced by insect larvae at the end of the feeding cycle are hexameric blood proteins with one or more type of subunits. The cDNA and gene structure of the aromatic amino acid-rich larval serum protein arylphorin from the tobacco hornworm, Manduca sexta, has been determined. In M. sexta arylphorin there are two subunits alpha and beta, which have 686 and 687 amino acids, respectively, and whose amino acid sequences are 68% identical. The two genes, separated by 7.1 kilobases of chromosomal DNA, are transcribed in the same direction. Based on the alignment of the amino acid sequence, the rate of nucleotide substitution between the two coding regions predicts that the two genes diverged about 100 million years ago. Both genes contain 5 exons and the upstream region contains a sequence, TGATAAA, which is similar to a sequence found in all other storage protein genes for which information is available. When the National Biomedical Research Foundation protein sequence data base was searched, it was found that the arylphorin subunits showed significant similarity to the arthropod hemocyanins, which are hexameric oxygen-carrying proteins. Based on the alignment of the sequence of M. sexta arylphorin and the hemocyanin from the spiny lobster (Panulirus interruptus), for which a 3.2 A structure has been determined, it was observed that the highest concentration of conserved residues were found in those regions of the sequence which are involved in subunit interactions in the hexameric protein. It is suggested that the insect storage proteins and the arthropod hemocyanins have evolved from a common ancestor.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1989

Chemical synthesis and enzymic processing of precursor forms of cecropins A and B.

Radiolabeled preprocecropin B, with an alpha-amidated COOH terminus, and preprocecropin A, extended at the COOH terminus by a glycine residue, were synthesized by solid-phase methods. The respective syntheses were interrupted at intervals to allow the preparation of the predicted procecropins A and B as well as three other truncated derivatives of the cecropin A precursors. All the synthetic peptides were purified to near homogeneity by reverse-phase liquid chromatography and their purity was established by analytical high performance liquid chromatography, gel electrophoresis, and amino acid analysis. A dipeptidyl aminopeptidase was purified about 350 times from the hemolymph of cecropia pupae and characterized by its affinity for different substrates and inhibitors. The synthetic prepro peptides were tested for processing by an extract of dog pancreas microsomes and purified leader peptidase from Escherichia coli, with and without partly purified dipeptidyl aminopeptidase, and the two synthetic proforms were also processed with the dipeptidyl aminopeptidase alone. From these experiments we conclude that the signal/leader peptidase cleaves the peptide bond between Ala-5 and Ala-4. This cleavage site is further substantiated by radio sequencing of procecropin A isolated after synthesis in a coupled system for in vitro transcription, translation, and processing. The two procecropins, which are stable to further digestion by the signal peptidase, are further processed by dipeptidyl aminopeptidase which removes, in two steps, the dipeptides Ala-Pro (residues -4 and -3) and Glu-Pro (residues -2 and -1). Although the synthetic peptide with only one dipeptide (Glu-Pro) preceding the mature cecropin sequence could function as a substrate for dipeptidyl aminopeptidase, it could be demonstrated as an intermediate in the enzymatic reaction with the procecropins. Dipeptidyl aminopoptidase did not cleave the procecropin analog when it was preceded by a single alanine residue, i.e. preprocecropin (-5,38). Antibacterial activity was demonstrated for the mature cecropin A-Gly obtained by processing of the synthetic preproprotein.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1987

Possible involvement of lumichrome in the binding of storage protein to its receptor in Sarcophaga peregrina.

Previously, a receptor molecule on the surface of fat body cells of Sarcophaga peregrina larvae that is involved in the uptake of storage protein from the hemolymph was shown to be a 120-kDa protein (Ueno, K., and Natori, S. (1984) J. Biol. Chem. 259, 12107-12111). This paper reports evidence that lumichrome (7,8-dimethylalloxazine) may be present in the binding site of the receptor and mediate the binding of storage protein and receptor. A stoichiometric amount of lumichrome was shown to bind to the storage protein under conditions in which the latter bound to its receptor.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

A family of bacteria-regulated, cecropin D-like peptides from Manduca sexta.

Manduca sexta larvae respond to bacterial challenge by synthesizing a set of antibacterial hemolymph proteins. We have purified and sequenced three members of a family of cecropin D-like bactericidal peptides and isolated a cDNA clone complementary to a closely related bactericidin. Results obtained by Northern hybridization and RNase protection analysis showed that the increased synthesis of bactericidins is due to induction of their mRNA levels and that the synthesis of these peptides is not strictly tissue-specific, in contrast to previous beliefs. Although fat body was a richer source, the relative amounts of bactericidin mRNA were significant in seven other tissues examined.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1988

Purification of three antibacterial proteins from the culture medium of NIH-Sape-4, an embryonic cell line of Sarcophaga peregrina.

Three antibacterial proteins were purified from the culture medium of NIH-Sape-4, an embryonic cell line of Sarcophaga peregrina (flesh fly). Sequencing studies showed that two of these proteins belong to the sarcotoxin I family, potent antibacterial proteins purified from the hemolymph of Sarcophaga larvae, whereas the other protein, named sapecin, is a new protein consisting of 40 amino acid residues including 6 cysteine residues. Unlike sarcotoxin I, sapecin preferentially represses the growth of various Gram-positive bacteria. The proteins of the sarcotoxin I family produced by this cell line were found to have carboxyl-terminal glycine, whereas sarcotoxin I in the hemolymph has amidated amino acids. This suggests that the embryonic cells lack an enzyme that cleaves off carboxyl-terminal glycine to form a new amidated carboxyl terminus.

Amino Acid Sequence↗