Triterpenoids as novel natural inhibitors of human cathepsin L.

Cathepsins L (catL) and B play an important role in tumor progression and have been considered promising therapeutic targets in the development of novel anticancer agents. Using a bioactivity-guided fractionation, a series of triterpenoids was identified as a new class of competitive inhibitors towards cathepsin L with affinity values in micromolar range. Among the 14 compounds evaluated, the most promising were 3-epiursolic acid (3), 3-(hydroxyimino)oleanolic acid (9), and 3-(hydroxyimino)masticadienoic acid (13) with IC50 values of 6.5, 2.4, and 2.6 µM on catL, respectively. Most of the evaluated triterpenoids do not inhibit cathepsin B. Thus, the evaluated compounds exhibit a great potential to help in the design of new inhibitors with enhanced potency and affinity towards catL. Docking studies were performed in order to gain insight on the binding mode and SAR of these compounds.

Determination of angiotensin I-converting enzyme activity in equine blood: lack of agreement between methods of analysis.

Angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE) is a key regulator of blood pressure, electrolytes and fluid homeostasis through conversion of angiotensin I into angiotensin II. Recently, a genetic polymorphism of the ACE gene, which accounts for 47% of the variation of ACE activity in blood, has been advocated as a biomarker of athletic aptitude. Different methods of analysis and determination of ACE activity in plasma have been used in human and equine research without a consensus of a "gold standard" method. Different methods have often been used interchangeably or cited as being comparable in the existing literature; however, the actual agreement between assays has not been investigated. Therefore, in this study, we evaluated the level of agreement between three different assays using equine plasma obtained from 29 horses. Two spectrophotometric assays using Furylacryloylphenylalanyl-glycyl-glycine as substrate and one fluorimetric assay utilizing o-aminobenzoic acid-FRK-(Dnp)P-OH were employed. The results revealed that the measurements from the different assays were not in agreement, indicating that the methods should not be used interchangeably for measurement of equine ACE activity. Rather, a single method of analysis should be adopted to achieve comparable results and critical appraisal of the literature is needed when attempting to compare results obtained from different assays.

Structure-activity relationships of hypervalent organochalcogenanes as inhibitors of cysteine cathepsins V and S.

A new series of organotelluranes were synthesized and investigated, and the structure-activity relationships in cysteine proteases inhibition were determined. It was possible to identify the relevance of structural components linked to the reactivity of these compounds as inhibitors. For example, dibromo-organotelluranes showed to be more reactive than dichloro-organotelluranes towards cysteine cathepsins V and S. Besides, no remarkable enantio-selectivity was verified. In general the achiral organotelluranes were more reactive than the chiral congeners against cysteine cathepsins V and S. A reactivity order for organochalcogenanes and cysteine cathepsins was proposed after the comparison of the inhibitory potencies of organotelluranes with the related organoselenanes.

Plasminogen hydrolysis by cathepsin S and identification of derived peptides as selective substrate for cathepsin V and cathepsin L inhibitor.

Plasminogen is a glycoprotein implicated in angiogenesis and fibrin clot degradation associated with the release of angiostatin and plasmin activation, respectively. We have recently reported that cathepsin V, but not cathepsins L, B, and K, can release angiostatin-like fragments from plasminogen. Here, we extended the investigation to cathepsin S which has been implicated in angiogenesis and tumor cell proliferation. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis analysis of plasminogen hydrolysis by cathepsin S revealed generation of two fragments (60 and 38 kDa). Amino-terminal sequencing indicated that cleavage occurs at the Leu469-Leu470 peptide bond. In contrast to cathepsin V, which possesses antiangiogenic activity, cathepsin S plasminogen cleavage products were not capable of inhibiting angiogenesis on endothelial cells. Moreover, we explored the different selectivities presented by cathepsins V and S towards plasminogen and synthesized fluorescence resonance energy transfer peptides encompassing the hydrolyzed peptide bonds by both enzymes. The peptide Abz-VLFEKKQ-EDDnp (Abz=ortho-aminobenzoic acid; EDDnp= N-[2,4-dinitrophenyl]ethylenediamine), hydrolyzed by cath-epsin V at the Phe-Glu bond, is a selective substrate for the enzyme when compared with cathepsins B, L, and S, whereas Abz-VLFEKKVYLQ-EDDnp is an efficient cathepsin L inhibitor. The demonstrated importance of the S(3)'-P(3)' interaction indicates the significance of the extended subsites for enzyme specificity and affinity.

Improvement of cathepsin S detection using a designed FRET peptide based on putative natural substrates.

Cathepsin S is a lysosomal cysteine peptidase of the papain superfamily which is implicated in physiological and pathological states. The enzyme is highly expressed in antigen presenting cells and is thought to play an important role in the processing of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II-associated invariant chain. In pathological processes, cathepsin S is associated with Alzheimer's disease, atherosclerosis and obesity and can be regarded as a potential target in related disorders. However, due to the broad substrate specificities of the lysosomal cathepsins, the specific detection of cathepsin S is difficult when other cathepsins are present. In an attempt to distinguish cathepsin S from other cathepsins we synthesized and tested fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) peptides derived from two of its putative natural substrates, namely insulin beta-chain and class II-associated invariant chain (CLIP). The influence of ionic strength on the catalytic activity and the enzyme stability in neutral pH was also analyzed. Using data gathered from our study we developed a selective substrate for cathepsin S and establish the assay conditions to differentiate the enzyme from cathepsins L, B, V and K. The peptide Abz-LEQ-EDDnp (Abz=ortho-aminobenzoic acid; EDDnp=N-[2,4-dinitrophenyl]ethylenediamine]) in 50mM sodium phosphate buffer, pH 7.4, containing 1M NaCl was hydrolyzed by cathepsin S with k(cat)/K(m) value of 3585mM(-1)s(-1), and was resistant to hydrolysis by cathepsins L, V, K and B. Thus, we developed a sensitive and selective cathepsins S substrate that permits continuous measurement of the enzymatic activity even in crude tissue extracts.

Irreversible inhibition of human cathepsins B, L, S and K by hypervalent tellurium compounds.

The inhibition of human cysteine cathepsins B, L, S and K was evaluated by a set of hypervalent tellurium compounds (telluranes) comprising both organic and inorganic derivatives. All telluranes studied showed a time- and concentration-dependent irreversible inhibition of the cathepsins, and their second-order inactivation rate constants were determined. The organic derivatives were potent inhibitors of the cathepsins and clear specificities were detected, which were parallel to their known substrate specificities. In all cases, the activity of the tellurane-inhibited cathepsins was recovered by treatment of the inactivated enzymes with reducing agents. The maximum stoichiometry of the reaction between cysteine residues and telluranes were also determined. The presented data indicate that it is possible to design organic compounds with a tellurium(IV) moiety as a novel warhead that covalently modifies the catalytic cysteine, and which also form strong interactions with subsites of cathepsins B, L, S and K, resulting in more specific inhibition.

Controlled peptide solvation in portion-mixing libraries of FRET peptides: improved specificity determination for Dengue 2 virus NS2B-NS3 protease and human cathepsin S.

The solubility of peptides in aqueous buffers used for the enzyme assays is a common limitation for all peptide libraries. In principle, the more water-soluble peptides are, the more susceptible they will be to peptidase hydrolysis. We have demonstrated that this bias can be circumvented in a portion-mixing fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) peptide library by introducing k (lysine in the D-form) in both termini of the peptides. This more solvated library and another one without the k were assayed using trypsin and chymotrypsin as standard peptidases with high selectivity for R and K and for hydrophobic F and Y, respectively. Significantly improved consistency of the information on substrate profiles was obtained from the solvated library. The influence of improved solvation on substrate specificity determination was successfully demonstrated by the difference in specificity observed between the two libraries employing the human cathepsin S (accepts acidic, basic, or neutral amino acids at P1 position) and Dengue 2 virus NS2B-NS3 protease (high specificity to the pair of basic amino acids K-R, R-R, or Q-R/K at P2-P1 positions). In conclusion, hydration of the peptides has a major influence on protease processing, and this bias can be reduced in bound peptide libraries, improving reliability.

A possible alternative mechanism of kinin generation in vivo by cathepsin L.

We investigated the ability of cathepsin L to induce a hypotensive effect after intravenous injection in rats and correlated this decrease in blood pressure with kinin generation. Simultaneously with blood pressure decrease, we detected plasma kininogen depletion in the treated rats. The effect observed in vivo was abolished by pre-incubation of cathepsin L with the cysteine peptidase-specific inhibitor E-64 (1 microM) or by previous administration of the bradykinin B2 receptor antagonist JE049 (4 mg/kg). A potentiation of the hypotensive effect caused by cathepsin L was observed by previous administration of the angiotensin I-converting enzyme inhibitor captopril (5 mg/kg). In vitro studies indicated that cathepsin L excised bradykinin from the synthetic fluorogenic peptide Abz-MTSVIRRPPGFSPFRAPRV-NH2, based on the Met375-Val393 sequence of rat kininogen (Abz = o-aminobenzoic acid). In conclusion, our data indicate that in vivo cathepsin L releases a kinin-related peptide, and in vitro experiments suggest that the kinin generated is bradykinin. Although it is well known that cysteine proteases are strongly inhibited by kininogen, cathepsin L could represent an alternative pathway for kinin production in pathological processes.

Comparative substrate specificity analysis of recombinant human cathepsin V and cathepsin L.

Cathepsins V and L have high identity and few structural differences. In this paper, we reported a comparative study of the hydrolytic activities of recombinant human cathepsins V and L using fluorescence resonance energy transfer peptides derived from Abz-KLRSSKQ-EDDnp (Abz = ortho-aminobenzoic acid and EDDnp = N-(2,4-dinitrophenyl)ethylenediamine). Five series of peptides were synthesized to map the S3 to S2' subsites. The cathepsin V subsites S1 and S3 present a broad specificity while cathepsin L has preference for positively charged residues. The S2 subsites of both enzymes require hydrophobic residues with preference for Phe and Leu. The S1' and S2' subsites of cathepsins V and L are less specific. Based on these data we designed substrates to explore the electrostatic potential differences of them. Finally, the kininogenase activities of these cathepsins were compared using synthetic human kininogen fragments. Cathepsin V preferentially released Lys-bradykinin while cathepsin L released bradykinin. This kininogenase activity by cathepsins V and L was also observed from human high and low molecular weight kininogens.

S3 to S3' subsite specificity of recombinant human cathepsin K and development of selective internally quenched fluorescent substrates.

We have systematically examined the S3 to S3' subsite substrate specificity requirements of cathepsin K using internally quenched fluorescent peptides derived from the lead sequence Abz-KLRFSKQ-EDDnp [where Abz is o -aminobenzoic acid and EDDnp is N -(2,4-dinitrophenyl)ethylenediamine]. We assayed six series of peptides, in which each position except Gln was substituted with various natural amino acids. The results indicated that the S3-S1 subsite requirements are more restricted than those of S1'-S3'. Cathepsin K preferentially accommodates hydrophobic amino acids with aliphatic side chains (Leu, Ile and Val) in the S2 site. Modifications at P1 residues also have a large influence on cathepsin K activity. Positively charged residues (Arg and Lys) represent the best accepted amino acids in this position, although a particular preference for Gly was found as well. Subsite S3 accepted preferentially basic amino acids such as Lys and Arg. A broad range of amino acids was accommodated in the remaining subsites. We further explored the acceptance of a Pro residue in the P2 position by cathepsin K in order to develop specific substrates for the enzyme. Two series of peptides with the general sequences Abz-KXPGSKQ-EDDnp and Abz-KPXGSKQ-EDDnp (where X denotes the position of the amino acid that is altered) were synthesized. The substrates Abz-KPRGSKQ-EDDnp and Abz-KKPGSKQ-EDDnp were cleaved by cathepsin K at the Arg-Gly and Gly-Ser bonds respectively, and have been shown to be specific for cathepsin K when compared with other lysosomal cysteine proteases such as cathepsins L and B and with the aspartyl protease cathepsin D.