Proprotein processing

One important function of DUBs is the processing of ubiquitin or ubiquitin-like proteins to their mature forms. Ubiquitin is expressed in cells as either linear poly-ubiquitin or N-terminally fused to certain ribosomal proteins [79, 80]. These gene products are processed by DUBs to separate the ubiquitin into monomers and expose the gly-gly motif at the G-terminus. Many DUBs process linear polyubiquitin or Ub-fusion proteins in vitro, but this processing appears to take place cotransla-tionally in vivo and is extremely rapid. This makes analysis difficult and leaves unanswered the question of which DUBs actually perform this function in vivo. Multiple DUBs may be able to perform this processing at a physiologically relevant level since DUB deletions rarely shows processing defects [81]. 

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Liu, G., Thomas, L., Warren, R. A., et al. (1997) Cytoskeletal protein ABP-280 directs the intracellular trafficking of furin and modulates proprotein processing in the endocytic pathway. J. Cell Biol. 139, 1719-1733. 

Like all neuropeptides, NT is synthesized as part of a larger precursor that also contains neuromedin N (NN), a 6 amino acid neurotensin-like peptide (Table 1). Pro-NT/NN is processed in the regulated secretory pathway of neuroendocrine cells by prohormone convertases PCI, PC2 and PC5-A that belong to a larger family of proprotein convertases. Due to differential cleavage specificity and tissue distribution of the convertases, pro-NT/NN processing gives rise to approximately a 1 1 and a 5 1 ratio of NT over NN content in the brain and gut, respectively. The peptides are stored in secretory vesicles and released from neuroendocrine cells in a Ca2+-dependent manner. NT and NN actions are terminated by desensitization of the... 

The maturation of proteins into their final structural state often involves the cleavage or formation (or both) of covalent bonds, a process termed posttranslational modification. Many polypeptides are initially synthesized as larger precursors, called proproteins. The extra polypeptide segments in these proproteins often serve as leader sequences that target a polypeptide... 

Soon after it was shown that ubiquitin is conjugated to proteins, it was determined that this was a reversible process and deubiquitinating enzymes, or DUBs, could remove ubiquitin from ubiquitinated proteins [18, 19]. As the genes for ubiquitin and ubiquitin-like proteins were identified it became clear that all ubiquitin family members were synthesized as proproteins and processed to reveal the C-terminal glycylglycine of the active proteins [20]. Based on this information, DUBs were defined as proteases that cleave at the C-terminus of ubiquitin or ubiquitin-like proteins to reverse conjugation to target proteins and also process the proproteins. 

The tachykinins are sometimes thought to act as a unit in some areas of the nervous system, because (1) SP and NKA are produced from a common precursor, (2) the processing of the pre-proprotein involves the same proteolytic enzymes, (3) different tachykinins can be stored and co-released from the same neuron, (4) they are degraded by the same enzymes, and (5) different peptides may activate the same receptors (Hokfelt et al. 2001). However, the distribution and expression levels of the various PPTs and NK receptors are quite distinct in many brain regions. 

Proprotein. A protein that is made in an inactive form, so that it requires processing to become functional. 

While proteins are synthesized on ribosomes the translation product is often subject to considerable post-translational modification that can involve proteolytic processing of the initial proprotein and covalent modification of the processed protein by glycosylation (addition of sugar residues), acylation (e.g. with fatty acids), methylation and phosphorylation. Unconjugated proteins are those in which there is no non-amino acid substituent and conjugated proteins are those that have been modified with non-amino acid entities. 

Significantly, the approach of activity profiling for cysteine proteases has established cathepsin L as a new protease pathway for neuropeptide biosynthesis. Together with current knowledge in the field, these data demonstrate the existence of two distinct protease pathways for converting proneuropeptides into active peptide neurotransmitters and hormones. These dual pathways consist of the newly discovered cysteine protease pathway for proneuropeptide processing, which consists of cathepsin L followed by Arg/Lys aminopeptidase (aminopeptidase B), and the previously known proprotein convertase (PC) family of subtilisin-like proteases (15-17) that process proneuropeptides with carboxypeptidase E (Fig. 3). Elucidation of these two protease pathways resulted from the application of the biochemical criteria required for processing proteases. 

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