And, exopeptidases

The end product of the action of endopeptidases and exopeptidases is a mixmre of free amino acids, di- and tripeptides, and oligopeptides, all of which are absorbed. Free amino acids are absorbed across the intestinal mucosa by sodium-dependent active transport. There are... 

One of the general principles of the Nomenclature Committee is that enzymes should be classified and named according to the reaction they catalyze. However, the overlapping specificities of and great similarities in the action of different peptidases render naming solely on the basis of function impossible [10]. For example, some enzymes can act as both endo- and exopeptidases. Thus, cathepsin H (EC 3.4.22.16) is not only an endopeptidase but also acts as an aminopeptidase (EC 3.4.11), and cathepsin B (EC 3.4.22.1) acts as an endopeptidase as well as a peptidyl-dipeptidase (EC 3.4.15). The actual classification of peptidases is, therefore, a compromise based not only on the reaction catalyzed but also on the chemical nature of the catalytic site, on physiological function, and on historical priority. 

SB 1 Family of endo- and exopeptidases (including proprotein convertases) Asp, His, Ser Parallel /3-sheet... 

SC 6 Families of endopeptidases (oligopeptidases) and exopeptidases (including lysosomal carboxypeptidase A in family S10) Ser, Asp, His a,/3-Hydrolase... 

The evolutionary classification has a rational basis, since, to date, the catalytic mechanisms for most peptidases have been established, and the elucidation of their amino acid sequences is progressing rapidly. This classification has the major advantage of fitting well with the catalytic types, but allows no prediction about the types of reaction being catalyzed. For example, some families contain endo- and exopeptidases, e.g., SB-S8, SC-S9 and CA-Cl. Other families exhibit a single type of specificity, e.g., all families in clan MB are endopeptidases, family MC-M14 is almost exclusively composed of carboxypeptidases, and family MF-M17 is composed of aminopeptidases. Furthermore, the same enzyme specificity can sometimes be found in more than one family, e.g., D-Ala-D-Ala carboxypeptidases are found in four different families (SE-S11, SE-S12, SE-S13, and MD-M15). 

The proteolytic activity of some multicatalytic peptidases is stimulated by ATP, whereas that of others is not influenced by ATP [32], The ATP-dependent proteolytic system first found in reticulocytes requires the presence of a heat-stable polypeptide called ubiquitin, one of the roles of which is to mark particular proteins for subsequent degradation [33. ATP-Indepen-dent multicatalytic peptidases can degrade proteins that have a free amino or an /V-acctylatcd terminus, as well as oxidatively altered or phosphorylat-ed proteins [34], The small peptides generated are resistant to multicatalytic peptidases and are further degraded by cytoplasmic endopeptidases and exopeptidases. 

The proteolytic enzymes are classified into endopeptidases and exopeptidases, according to their site of attack in the substrate molecule. The endopeptidases or proteinases cleave peptide bonds inside peptide chains. They recognize and bind to short sections of the substrate s sequence, and then hydrolyze bonds between particular amino acid residues in a relatively specific way (see p. 94). The proteinases are classified according to their reaction mechanism. In serine proteinases, for example (see C), a serine residue in the enzyme is important for catalysis, while in cysteine proteinases, it is a cysteine residue, and so on. 

We have chosen to discuss enzyme modification of proteins in terms of changes in various functional properties. Another approach might have been to consider specific substrates for protease action such as meat and milk, legumes and cereals, and the novel sources of food protein such as leaves and microorganisms ( ). Alternatively, the proteases themselves provide categories for discussion, among which are their source (animals, plants, microorganisms), their type (serine-, sulfhydryl-, and metalloenzymes), and their specificity (endo- and exopeptidases, aromatic, aliphatic, or basic residue bond specificity). See Yamamoto (2) for a review of proteolytic enzymes important to functionality. 

The schistosome gastrodermis produces an array of both endopeptidases (that cleave within a substrate protein) and exopeptidases (cleavage occurring at either end of a substrate), and their concerted action allows for the complete... 

Proteolytic enzymes such as proteases and peptidases are ubiquitous throughout the body. Sites capable of extensive peptide and protein metabolism are not only limited to the liver, kidneys, and gastrointestinal tissue, but also include the blood and vascular endothelium as well as other organs and tissues. As proteases and peptidases are also located within cells, intracellular uptake is per se more an elimination rather than a distribution process [13]. While peptidases and proteases in the gastrointestinal tract and in lysosomes are relatively unspecific, soluble peptidases in the interstitial space and exopeptidases on the cell surface have a higher selectivity and determine the specific metabolism pattern of an organ. The proteolytic activity of subcutaneous tissue, for example, results in a partial loss of activity of SC compared to IV administered interferon-y. 

The remaining prohormone contains stretches of amino acids sequences unrelated to biological activity. These sequences are removed by proteolytic enzymes such as endopeptidases which act on dibasic or monobasic amino acid residues, and exopeptidases (e.g., carboxypeptidases and aminopeptidases) which remove amino acid residues from the C-terminal and N-terminal ends, respectively. A single prohormone may yield one or more biologically active and distinct hormones. 

Dietary proteins, with very few exceptions, are not absorbed rather they must be digested into amino acids, or di- and tripeptides. Protein digestion begins in the stomach, where proenzyme pepsinogen is autocatalytically converted to pepsin A. Most proteolysis takes place in the duodenum via enzymes secreted by the pancreas, including trypsinogen, chymotrypsinogen and pro-carboxypeptidase A. These serine and zinc proteases are produced in the form of their respective proenzymes they are both endopeptidase and exopeptidase, and their combined action leads to the production of amino acids, dipeptides and tripeptides. 

Proteases can be classified into two major groups endopeptidases and exopeptidases. 

FIG. 5. Schematic representation of the hydrolysis of a hypothetical dodecapeptide by the combined action of endo- and exopeptidases of Lactococcus spp. Modified fromFox etal (1995). 

Intracellular acid proteinase(s) and exopeptidases (amino and carboxy) have been found in P. roqueforti and P. camemberti but have not been well studied (see Gripon et al, 1991 Gripon, 1993). P. roqueforti excretes a carboxypeptidase with an acid pH optimum and an alkaline metallo amino-peptidase (see Gripon et al, 1991 Gripon, 1993). 

Proteins are hydrolytically cleaved at the peptide linkages by proteases (peptidases, EC3.4.-.-) (Beynon and Bond, 2001 Sterchi and Stdkenn, 1999). Two classes of peptidases are endopeptidases, which cleave internal bonds (e.g. chymotrypsin, trypsin), and exopeptidases, which hydrolyze the terminal residue of a polypeptide chain (e.g. aminopeptidases, carboxypeptidases). Table 12.10 lists some of the common proteases classified mechanistically according to their characteristics. 

---