Bovine pancreatic carboxypeptidase

There are five distinct families of zinc proteases, classified by the nature of the zinc binding site. These families, and their variously proposed mechanisms, have recently been reviewed in depth.143 The most studied member is the digestive enzyme bovine pancreatic carboxypeptidase A, which is a metalloenzyme containing one atom of zinc bound to its single polypeptide chain of 307 amino acids and Mr 34 472. It is an exopeptidase, which catalyzes the hydrolysis of C-terminal amino acids from polypeptide substrates, and is specific for the large hydrophobic amino acids such as phenylalanine. The closely related carboxypeptidase B catalyzes the hydrolysis of C-terminal lysine and arginine residues. The two en-... 

The most studied member of zinc proteases is the digestive enzyme bovine pancreatic carboxypeptidase A (CPA) which is a metalloenzyme containing one atom of zinc bound to its single polypeptide side chain of 307 amino acids with a molecular weight of 34 kD. It is an exopeptidase, which catalyses the hydrolysis of C-terminal amino... 

Enzyme Models .—Two general mechanisms have been proposed for hydrolytic reactions catalysed by bovine pancreatic carboxypeptidase A the first involves formation of an anhydride intermediate and the second involves the residue Glu-270 as a general base. Work on model systems and the enzyme indicates that the general base mechanism is the correct one and a consistent mechanism (Scheme 4) has been proposed in which both zinc and Arg-145 interact with the substrate. 

Hendriks et al. [106] modeled the structure of the enzymatically active subunit of human plasma carboxypeptidase N based on the structure of bovine pancreatic carboxypeptidase A. The aim of the study was twofold improved understanding of the way the molecule functions and understanding the... 

Wintersberger2 isolated from bovine pancreatic carboxypeptidase a peptide containing a thiol group involved in the binding of zinc. He first removed the zinc by exposure to a chelating agent (1,10-phenanthroline) or by denaturation, and then labeled the reactive sulfhydryl group by reaction with DDPM and determined the amino acid sequence. 

Carboxypeptidase A is a metalloenzyme—an enzyme that contains a tightly bound metal ion. The metal ion in carboxypeptidase A is Zn. Carboxypeptidase A is one of several hundred enzymes known to contain zinc. In bovine pancreatic carboxypeptidase A, Zn is bound to the enzyme at its active site by forming a complex with Glu 72, His 196, and His 69, as well as with a water molecule (Figure 24.5). (The source of the enzyme is specified because, although carboxypeptidase As from different sources follow the same mechanism, they have slightly different primary stmctures.)... 

This discussion of the metalloexopeptidases has focused on the general role of these enzymes in the conversion of dietary proteins into amino acids. In particular, the apparent synergistic relationship which the pancreatic carboxypeptidases have with the major endopeptidases, trypsin, chymotrypsin, and pepsin, in order to facilitate formation of essential amino acids has been stressed. The chemical characteristics, metalloenzyme nature, and mechanistic details of a representative of each class of exopeptidase have been presented. Leucine aminopeptidase from bovine lens was shown to be subject to an unusual type of metal ion activation which may be representative of a more general situation. Carboxypeptidase A of bovine pancreas was discussed in terms of its three-dimensional structure, the implications of x-ray crystallography to mecha ... 

Fig. 1. Chromatography of bovine pancreatic juice on DEAE-cellulose (anionic proteins) and Amberlite IRC-50 (cationic proteins) (1). RNAase, ribonuclease ChTg-a, chymotrypsinogen A Tg, trypsinogen ProCp-B and Cp-B, procarboxypeptidase B and carboxypeptidase B DNAase, deoxyribonuclease ProCp-A, procarboxypeptidase A.

The carboxypeptidases are released from their inactive precursors in the pancreatic juice of animals. The most studied example is bovine carboxypeptidase A, which contains one mole of zinc per protein molecular weight of 34 500. These enzymes cleave the C-terminal amino acid residue from peptides and proteins, when the side-chain of the C-terminal residue is aromatic or branched aliphatic of l configuration. At least the first five residues in the substrate affect the activity of the enzyme. The enzyme also shows esterase activity. Esters and peptides inhibit each other competitively, indicating that the peptidase and esterase sites overlap, even if they are not the same. 

The specificities of the various digestive exo- and endopep-tidases suggest that they act synergistically to fulfill a major nutritional function. The concerted action of trypsin, chy-motrypsin, pepsin, and carboxypeptidases A and B facilitate and ensure formation of essential amino acids. The chemical characteristics and metalloenzyme nature of two bovine exopeptidases, lens aminopeptidase and pancreatic carboxy-peptidase A, indicate similarities in their mechanisms of action. However, the aminopeptidase exhibits an unusual type of metal ion activation not observed unth carboxy-peptidase. Chemical and physicochemical studies reveal that the latter enzyme has different structural conformations in its crystal and solution states. Moreover, various kinetic data indicate that its mode of action toward ester substrates differs from that toward peptide substrates. The active site metal atom of carboxypeptidase figures prominently in these differences. 

In 1936, Anson (127) crystallized what is now called carboxypeptidase A from autolyzed bovine pancreas and noted that fresh pancreas did not contain the active enzyme, but an inactive precursor now named procarboxypeptidase A. It has been reported in the preceding sections that pancreatic juices of other species also contain large amounts of procarboxypeptidase A which can be separated by chromatography on DEAE-cellulose at pH 8.0 in a buffer of increasing molarity. 

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