Cathepsins

Cathepsin B (from human liver) [9047-22-7] Mr 27,500 [EC 3.4.22.1]. Purified by affinity chromatography on the semicarbazone of Gly-Phe-glycinal-linked to Sepharose 4B, with elution by 2,2 -dipyridyl disulfide [Rich el al. Biochem J 235 731 1986 Methods Enzymol 80 551 1981]. 

Cathepsin D (from bovine spleen) [9025-26-7] Mr 56,000, [EC 3.4.23.5]. Purified on a CM column after ammonium sulfate fractionation and dialysis, then starch-gel electrophoresis and by ullracentrifugal analysis. Finally chromatographed on a DEAE column [Press et al. Biochem J 74 501 I960],... 

Cathepsin D Spleen, liver, and many other animal tissues Lysosomal digestion of proteins... 

More recently, miraziridine A (113) was isolated from a marine sponge related to Theonella mirabilis and shown to inhibit the cysteine protease cathepsin B. It has been shown that the aziridine ring plays a key role in this biological activity and gives rise to irreversible inhibition of cathepsins B and L, presumably through... 

Enzyme inhibitors (e.g. metalloproteinases, cathepsin K) Purinergic modulators... 

Cathepsins are intracellular proteinases that reside within lysosomes or specific intracellular granules. Cathepsins are used to degrade proteins or pqffides that are internalised from the extracellular space. Some cathepsins such as cathepsin-G or cathepsin-K may be released from the cell to degrade specific extracellular matrix proteins. All cathepsins except cathepsin-G (serine) and cathepsin-D (aspartyl) are cysteine proteinases. 

Chymotrypsin-like proteinases are serine proteinases that recognize pqDtide residues with aromatic side chains (phyenylalanyl or tyrosyl residues) and that effect hydrolysis of the polypeptide chain on the carboxy-terminal side of these residues. Examples of chymotrypsin-like proteinases are chymotrypsin and cathepsin-G. 

Besides AT, heparin cofactor II (HCII) is an antic-oagulatory protein enhanced by heparin. HCII inactivates thrombin and the nonclotting enzymes cathepsin-G and chymotrypsin. 

For many serine and cysteine peptidases catalysis first involves formation of a complex known as an acyl intermediate. An essential residue is required to stabilize this intermediate by helping to form the oxyanion hole. In cathepsin B a glutamine performs this role and sometimes a catalytic tetrad (Gin, Cys, His, Asn) is referred too. In chymotrypsin, a glycine is essential for stabilizing the oxyanion hole. 

AA A1 A01.009 Cathepsin D Diagnosis and prognosis of breast and other cancers... 

AA A1 A01.010 Cathepsin E Excitotoxin-induced neuronal cell death... 

CA C1 C01.033 Cathepsin L-like peptidase (Fasciola sp.) Potential drug target for liver fluke infection... 

CA C1 C01.034 Cathepsin S Tissue damage associated with inflammation... 

CA C1 C01.036 Cathepsin K Potential drug target for control of osteoporosis... 

Gener ally, a family of peptidases contains either exopeptidases or endopeptidases, but there are exceptions. Family Cl contains not only endopeptidases such as cathepsin L, but also the aminopeptidase bleomycin hydrolase. Some members of this family can act as exopeptidases as well as endopeptidases. For example, cathepsin B also acts as a peptidyl-dipeptidase, and... 

Cleavage occur s at the scissile bond. Residues in the substrate towards the N-terminus are numbered PI, P2, P3, etc, whereas residues towards the C-terminus are numbered PI, P2, P3 etc. Cleavage occurs between PI and P1. For a peptidase with limited specificity, only the residue in PI or PI is important for specificity. A peptidase with an extended substrate binding site will have a preference for residues in other positions. For example cathepsin L prefers substrates with phenylalanine in P2 and arginine in PI. However, this is a preference only, and cathepsin L cleaves substrates after other amino acids. Caspase-3 has a preference for Asp in both P4 and PI, but it is unusual for substrate specificity to extend much further from the scissile bond. The peptidase with the most extended substrate specificity may be mitochondrial intermediate peptidase that removes an octopeptide targeting signal from the N-terminus of cytoplasmically synthesized proteins that are destined for import into the mitochondrial lumen. 

Inhibitors for proteases plasmepsin I and II of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum, with a good plasmepsin/human protease cathepsin D selectivity, have been identified via library construction involving rapid microwave-accelerated Suzuki reactions [57]. The phenyl ring of the biphenyl unit in the lead compound M-((lS)-l- [((lS,2S)-3- [(lS)-2-amino-l-(4-phenyl-benzyl)-2-oxoethyl]amino -2-hydroxy-l-phenoxypropyl)amino]carbonyl -2-methylpropyl)pyridine-2-carboxamide has been altered by performing Suzuki reactions on N-((lS)-l- [((lS,2S)-3- [(lS)-2-amino-l-(4-bromobenzyl)-2-oxoethyl]amino -2-hydroxy-l-phenoxypropyl)amino]carbonyl -2-methyl-propyl)pyridine-2-carboxamide (Scheme 37). In particular, a 2-benzofuryl moiety proved to be interesting since a Ki value of 13 nM for plasmepsin I and... 

Cathepsin D. The design of inhibitors of the aspartyl protease cathepsin D started from a virtual library of peptide analogs that contained the typical hydroxyethylamine isoster for the cleavable peptide bond. As the availability of starting materials would have generated a library of about 1 billion compounds, virtual screening was applied to reduce this multitude of candidate structures to a reasonable number. The backbone of a peptide... 

Plasmepsin II. The malarial aspartyl protease plasmepsin II has a significant homology (35%) to cathepsin D. Correspondingly, the very same approach as for the cathepsin D inhibitors (see above) was followed. The best inhibitors have Ki values of 2-10nM, a molecular weight <650, moderate selectivity vs. cathepsin D, the most closely related human protease, log P values <4.6, and no apparent binding to human serum albumin, for example, compound 36 Ki plasmepsin II = 2.0nM, Ki cathepsin D = 9.8nM Fig. 16.5) [111]. 

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