Identification of a C-terminal cdc25 sequence required for promotion of germinal vesicle breakdown.

Glutathione S-transferase (GST)-cdc25B(31-566) induced germinal vesicle breakdown (GVBD) when microinjected into Xenopus oocytes. Purified, N-terminally truncated forms of cdc25B did not induce GVBD, even though many had phosphatase activity and activated cdc2 in vitro. N-terminally truncated forms of cdc25B inhibited induction of GVBD by longer forms of the enzyme suggesting a direct interaction in vivo. cdc25B(356-556), but not cdc25B(364-529), inhibited GVBD induction by GST-cdc25B(31-566) suggesting that a region of cdc25B near to the C-terminus was responsible for the inhibition. To determine the region of peptide sequence that was inhibitory, cdc25B(356-556) was subjected to proteolysis with endoproteinase lys-C. Following a demonstration that the resulting peptide mixture inhibited GST-cdc25B-dependent GVBD, a series of peptides spanning amino acids at the C-terminus were synthesized. The peptide TRSWAGERSR inhibited GVBD induced by GST-cdc25B. An alanine scan of the peptide revealed residues critical for GVBD inhibition, and site-directed mutagenesis of the corresponding residues in GST-cdc25B(31-566) eliminated its ability to induce GVBD. These results demonstrate that a cdc25B C-terminal domain, involved in dominant-negative inhibition of GVBD-competent cdc25B, is required for induction of GVBD following microinjection into oocytes.

Comparative biological activities of alpha-MSH antagonists in vertebrate pigment cells.

We have previously reported that melatonin was an effective lightening agonist in the teleost Synbranchus marmoratus, the amphibians Rana pipiens and Bufo ictericus, and in the lizard Anolis carolinensis. The hormone, previously applied to the preparations, effectively inhibited alpha-MSH darkening activity in a dose-independent manner, and was also able to reverse MSH-induced darkening. We presently describe the inhibitory effect of the indoleamine on the murine melanoma cell proliferation. Interestingly, the hormone also stimulated tyrosinase activity, with a correlated increase in melanin content. We also demonstrate that in a diverse lizard species, Urosaurus ornatus, the indoleamine was totally ineffective. The competitive MSH antagonistic activity of H-His-D-Arg-Ala-Trp-D-Phe-Lys-NH2 has been demonstrated previously in R. pipiens and U. ornatus. Herein, its inhibitory activity is also reported in another lizard species, A. carolinensis. However, this MSH analogue was inactive in S. marmoratus, and in murine melanoma cells. On the other hand, the 7 thru 10 alpha-MSH fragment, Ac-Phe-Arg-Trp-Gly-NH2, although ineffective in S. marmoratus and R. pipiens, was an alpha-MSH antagonist in A. carolinensis. Surprisingly, in the melanoma cell line, the MSH fragment exhibited no agonist or antagonist activity, but dramatically potentiated the MSH-induced increase in tyrosinase activity. These data might suggest that the fragment is participating either in the process of facilitation or in positive cooperativity. The present results, taken together with our previously reported data, demonstrate a major interspecies diversity of the MC1 subtype of melanocortin receptor, and point out the relevance of the membrane microenvironment for the final receptor configuration.

A scintillation proximity assay for UDP-GalNAc:polypeptide, N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase.

A rapid and simple method for quantitating the reaction product of UDP-GalNAc:polypeptide, N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase (GalNAc-transferase) by scintillation proximity assay (SPA) was developed. The assay quantitates the radioactivity incorporated from 3H-labeled UDP-GalNAc into a biotin-labeled acceptor peptide, as measured after adsorption of the acceptor peptide to avidin-coated SPA beads. The acceptor peptide, PPASTSAPG (Elhammer et al. (1993) J. Biol. Chem. 268, 10029-10038) was conjugated to biotin using a di-beta-alanine spacer arm. The conjugated peptide reacted readily with the enzyme and it had an apparent Km comparable to that of the parent peptide. Using a reaction mixture consisting of 4 mg of SPA beads, 17 microM acceptor, 0.5 microM nucleotide sugar, and 7.5 U/ml enzyme, the time dependence of product formation obeyed Michaelis-Menten-type kinetics throughout the full course of the reaction-until exhaustion of the donor substrate-and the beginning portion of the reaction was sufficiently linear for calculating accurate initial rates. Analysis of the time dependency yielded an apparent Km of 0.38 +/- 0.12 microM for UDP-GalNAc. The assay is conveniently carried out in 96-well microtiter plates; it is ideally suited for assaying large numbers of samples and for screening large collections of chemicals for competitive inhibitors.

Truncation studies of alpha-melanotropin peptides identify tripeptide analogues exhibiting prolonged agonist bioactivity.

Truncation studies of alpha-melanotropin peptides identify tripeptide analogues exhibiting prolonged agonist bioactivity: PEPTIDES 17(6) 995-1002, 1996.-Systematic analysis of fragment derivatives of the superpotent alpha-MSH analogue. Ac-Ser.Tyr-Ser-Nle4-Glu- His-DPhe7-Arg-Trp-Gly-Lys-Pro-Val-NH2(NDP-MSH), led to the discovery of tripeptide agonists possessing prolonged bioactivity in the frog skin assay. Of particular significance to this discovery was Ac-DPhe-Arg-DTrp-NH2, which was the most potent tripeptide in this series exhibiting sustained melanotropic activity. Different pharmacophore models appear to exist that are dependent on the substructure and stereochemistry of the MSH(6-9) "active site." The tripeptides Ac-DPhe-Arg-Trp-NH2, Ac-DPhe-Arg-DTrp-NH2, and Ac-DPhe-DArg-Trp-NH2 stereo-chemical combinations require only Phe7-Xaa8-Trp9, whereas Ac-DPhe-DArg-DTrp-NH2, Ac-Phe-Arg-DTrp-NH2, and Ac-Phe-Arg-Trp-NH2 additionally require His4 for minimal biological activity. Ac-DPhe-Arg-DTrp-NH2 represents a novel prototype lead for the development of MSH-based peptidomimetic agonists.

Effect on protein phosphatase activity of peptide backbone modification and truncation of the autoinhibitory domain peptide of calcineurin.

Solid-phase synthesis of the autoinhibitory domain of calcineurin, CaN A467-491, also produced [aspartimide477]CaN A467-491 and [iso-Asp477]CaN467-491 when Boc-based chemistry was employed. In addition, the truncated peptide CaN A467-488 was obtained when Fmoc-based chemistry was employed. All four peptides proved to be effective inhibitors of protein phosphatase activity of calcineurin. The full-length peptide and the C-terminally truncated peptide (CaN467-488) were indistinguishable, with Ki values of 28 +/- 3 and 31 +/- 5 mu M, respectively. The internally modified peptides, [iso-Asp477]CaN A467-491 and [aspartimide477]-CaN A467-491, possessed lower inhibitory potencies (Ki values of 87 +/- 10 and 55 +/- 3 mu M, respectively).

Discovery of an alpha-melanotropin antagonist effective in vivo.

A hybrid analogue, H-His-D-Arg-Ala-Trp-D-Phe-Lys-NH2, was designed based upon the primary structures of a growth hormone-releasing peptide analogue, [His1,Lys6]GHRP, and the MSH fragment, Ac-alpha-MSH(6-11)-NH2. In vitro studies demonstrated the alpha-MSH antagonistic efficacy of the analogue in the lizards Sceloporus jarrovii and Urosaurus ornatus. In live white background-adapted S. jarrovii previously injected with the antagonist (10 nmol/5 g b.wt.), maximal skin darkening induced by alpha-MSH was reduced to 50%. In white background-adapted U. ornatus, previous injection of the analogue (1 nmol/5 g b.wt.) totally abolished the response to alpha-MSH and depressed to 50% the maximal response elicited by the superpotent MSH analogue, [Nle4,D-Phe7]alpha-MSH.

HIV protease (HIV PR) inhibitor structure-activity-selectivity, and active site molecular modeling of high affinity Leu [CH(OH)CH2]Val modified viral and nonviral substrate analogs.

This report details the structure-activity relationships of the HIV gag substrate analog Val-Ser-Gln-Asn-Leu psi[CH(OH)CH2]Val-Ile-Val (U-85548E), an inhibitor exhibiting subnanomolar affinity towards HIV type-1 aspartic proteinase (HIV-1 PR). Our data show that the P1-P2' tripeptidyl sequence provides the minimal chemical determinant for HIV-1 PR binding. We describe the structure-activity properties of Leu psi[CH(OH)CH2]Val substitution in other peptidyl ligands of nonviral substrate origin (e.g., angiotensinogen, insulin and pepstatin). Furthermore, the aspartic proteinase selectivities of a few key compounds are summarized relative to evaluation against human renin, human pepsin, and the fungal enzyme, rhizopuspepsin. These studies have led to the rational design of nanomolar potent inhibitors of both HIV-1 and HIV-2 PR. Finally, a 2.5 A resolution X-ray crystallographic structure of U-85548E complexed to synthetic HIV-1 PR dimer (Jaskolski et al., Biochemistry 30, 1600 [1991]) provided a 3-D picture of the inhibitor bound to the enzyme active site, and we performed computer-assisted molecular modeling studies to explore the possible binding modes of the above series of Leu psi[CH(OH)CH2]Val substituted HIV-1 PR inhibitors.

Spectroscopic analysis of [Trp3]-beta-casomorphin analogs. Comparative structure conformation-activity studies.

A series of [3-tryptophan]-beta-casomorphin-5([Trp3]-beta-CM-5) analogs were investigated by circular dichroism (CD) and fluorescence spectroscopy to explore their structure-conformation properties in solution. In addition, the comparative opioid activities of these compounds were evaluated using the in vitro guinea pig ileum (GPI) and mouse vas deferens (MVD) assays. Specifically, the pentapeptide sequence of [Trp3]-beta-CM-5, H-Tyr-Pro-Trp-Pro-Gly-OH (I) was modified at Pro-2 and Pro-4 by D-Pro substitutions to provide two diastereometric analogs, [Trp3-D-Pro-4]-beta-CM-5 (II) and [D-Pro2,4,Trp3]-beta-CM-5 (III). In the GPI and MVD assays, beta-CM-5 effected IC50 values of 1.3 microM and 8.9 microM, respectively, which confirmed its known mu/delta-selectivity on these two peripheral opioid receptor subtypes. The potencies of compounds I, II, and III were 0.2, 2.0, and less than 0.005 relative to beta-CM-5 on the GPI assay. Compounds I and II exhibited pronounced mu/delta-selectivities (greater than 18.9- and 12.4-fold respectively), whereas compound III was essentially inactive in both the GPI and MVD assays. CD studies of beta-CM-5 and its [Trp3]-beta-CM-5 analogs showed striking differences in their near-UV and far-UV spectra in aqueous or organic solvents. In the far UV CD spectra, weak (20%) alpha-helicity (maximum at 193 nm and minima at 208 and 222 nm) for beta-CM-5 was obtained in trifluoroethanol (TFE); however, none of the [Trp3]-beta-CM-5 analogs showed such CD bands. Of potential relevance to gamma-turn or C7 secondary structure was the observation of a strong negative band at 245 nm for compounds II and III which was not solvent-dependent in H2O or TFE, whereas compound I showed this CD band exclusively in TFE. In the near-UV CD at 275 nm (Trp electronic transition), the relative order of intensities of this band were determined for the [Trp3]-beta-CM-5 compounds to be II greater than I greater than III, which was identical to their relative biological potencies in both the GPI and MVD assays. Fluorescence energy transfer (FET) experiments of compounds I-III provided the intramolecular distances (r) between their Tyr (donor) to Trp (acceptor) side-chains, by the Förster method, and were as follows: [Trp3]-beta-CM-5, r = 10.6 A; [Trp3, D-Pro4]-beta-CM-5, r = 9.6 A; and [D-Pro2,4,Trp3]-beta-CM-5, r = 11.0 A.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

A comparative trial of two walking systems for paralysed people.

A trial has been performed to compare two designs of reciprocal walking orthosis for paralysed people--the hip guidance orthosis (HGO) from Oswestry, England, and the reciprocating gait orthosis (RGO) from New Orleans, USA. Eighteen male and 4 female paraplegic subjects used each orthosis for 4 months, in a crossover study. All aspects of the provision and use of the devices were monitored, and a variety of assessments were made. Fifteen subjects were able to use both orthoses, 5 were unable to use either and 2 succeeded with the HGO but not the RGO. At the end of the trial 12 subjects chose to keep the RGO, 4 the HGO, and 6 kept neither. Those choosing the RGO liked its appearance; those choosing the HGO liked the speed of donning and doffing. The RGO was about 50% more expensive to supply than the HGO.

Specificity and inhibition of proteases from human immunodeficiency viruses 1 and 2.

Highly purified, recombinant preparations of the virally encoded proteases from human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) 1 and 2 have been compared relative to 1) their specificities toward non-viral protein and synthetic peptide substrates, and 2) their inhibition by several P1-P1' pseudodipeptidyl-modified substrate analogs. Hydrolysis of the Leu-Leu and Leu-Ala bonds in the Pseudomonas exotoxin derivative, Lys-PE40, is qualitatively the same for HIV-2 protease as published earlier for the HIV-1 enzyme (Tomasselli, A. G., Hui, J. O., Sawyer, T. K., Staples, D. J., FitzGerald, D. J., Chaudhary, V. K., Pastan, I., and Heinrikson, R. L. (1990) J. Biol. Chem. 265, 408-413). However, the rates of cleavage at these two sites are reversed for the HIV-2 protease which prefers the Leu-Ala bond. The kinetics of hydrolysis of this protein substrate by both enzymes are mirrored by those obtained from cleavage of model peptides. Hydrolysis by the two proteases of other synthetic peptides modeled after processing sites in HIV-1 and HIV-2 gag polyproteins and selected analogs thereof demonstrated differences, as well as similarities, in selectivity. For example, while the two proteases were nearly identical in their rates of cleavage of the Tyr-Pro bond in the HIV-1 gag fragment, Val-Ser-Gln-Asn-Tyr-Pro-Ile-Val, the HIV-1 protease showed a 64-fold enhancement over the HIV-2 enzyme in hydrolysis of a Tyr-Val bond in the same template. Accordingly, the HIV-2 protease appears to have a different specificity than the HIV-1 enzyme; it is better able to hydrolyze substrates with small amino acids in P1 and P1', but is variable in its rate of hydrolysis of peptides with bulky substituents in these positions. In addition to these comparisons of the two proteases with respect to substrate specificity, we present inhibitor structure-activity data for the HIV-2 protease. Relative to P1-P1' statine or Phe psi [CH2N]Pro-modified pseudopeptidyl inhibitors, compounds having Xaa psi[CH(OH)CH2]Yaa inserts were found to show significantly higher affinities to both enzymes, generally binding from 10 to 100 times stronger to HIV-1 protease than to the HIV-2 enzyme. Molecular modeling comparisons based upon the sequence homology of the two enzymes and x-ray crystal structures of HIV-1 protease suggest that most of the nonconservative amino acid replacements occur in regions well outside the catalytic cleft, while only subtle structural differences exist within the active site.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Proteases from human immunodeficiency virus and avian myeloblastosis virus show distinct specificities in hydrolysis of multidomain protein substrates.

The virally encoded proteases from human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and avian myeloblastosis virus (AMV) have been compared relative to their ability to hydrolyze a variant of the three-domain Pseudomonas exotoxin, PE66. This exotoxin derivative, missing domain I and referred to as LysPE40, is made up of a 13-kilodalton NH2-terminal translocation domain II connected by a segment of 40 amino acids to enzyme domain III of the toxin, a 23-kilodalton ADP-ribosyltransferase. HIV protease hydrolyzes two peptide bonds in LysPE40, a Leu-Leu bond in the interdomain region and a Leu-Ala bond in a nonstructured region three residues in from the NH2-terminus. Neither of these sites is cleaved by the AMV enzyme; hydrolysis occurs, instead, at an Asp-Val bond in another part of the interdomain segment and at a Leu-Thr bond in the NH2-terminal region of domain II. Synthetic peptides corresponding to these cleavage sites are hydrolyzed by the individual proteases with the same specificity displayed toward the protein substrate. Peptide substrates for one protease are neither substrates nor competitive inhibitors for the other. A potent inhibitor of HIV type 1 protease was more than 3 orders of magnitude less active toward the AMV enzyme. These results suggest that although the crystallographic models of Rous sarcoma virus protease (an enzyme nearly identical to the AMV enzyme) and HIV type 1 protease show a high degree of similarity, there exist structural differences between these retroviral proteases that are clearly reflected by their kinetic properties.

Substrate specificity and inhibitor structure-activity relationships of recombinant human renin: implications in the in vivo evaluation of renin inhibitors.

Homogeneous, active recombinant human renin obtained from Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells was characterized in vitro by (i) determination of its relative rates of hydrolysis of plasma angiotensinogens (ANGs) from human, monkey, baboon, rat, pig, rabbit, hamster, and dog and (ii) analysis of several synthetic ANG-based, inhibitors ranging in IC50 from 10(-10) to 10(-6) M. Comparison of the recombinant human renin with human kidney renin showed that these enzymes were indistinguishable from each other in terms of their plasma ANG specificities and inhibition by synthetic renin inhibitors. Porcine kidney renin was also characterized and shown to display plasma ANG hydrolysis profiles and inhibitor potencies that were markedly different from those of human renins. Finally, the results using the above plasma ANGs extend previous studies showing that the substrate specificity of human renin may be influenced by the amino acid residues at P2 (i.e., Ile, Val, or Tyr) and P3 (i.e., His or Tyr) sites. The relevance of these data to in vivo evaluation of renin inhibitors in animal models is discussed.

Alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone message and inhibitory sequences: comparative structure-activity studies on melanocytes.

We investigated the structure-activity relationships of alpha-MSH (alpha-melanocyte stimulating hormone) fragment derivatives of the generic formulae Ac-alpha-MSH(x-13)-NH2 and Ac-alpha-MSH(6-x)-NH2. The minimal C-terminal sequences required for melanotropic activity were 8-13 and 7-13, respectively, in the frog and lizard skin bioassays. The Arg8-Trp9 sequence appears to be a fundamental component of the minimal message sequences found to date such as alpha-MSH(6-9), alpha-MSH(8-13) and alpha-MSH(7-13). We discovered that Ac-alpha-MSH(7-10)-NH2 was a weak and selective alpha-MSH antagonist on the lizard skin bioassay. Analysis of alpha-MSH(7-10) analogues of the generic formula Ac-Xaa-Arg-Trp-Yaa-NH2 led to Ac-[D-Trp7,D-Phe10]alpha-MSH(7-10)-NH2, a moderately potent, specific and competitive inhibitor of alpha-MSH in both the frog and the lizard skin bioassays.

Substrate analogue inhibition and active site titration of purified recombinant HIV-1 protease.

The aspartyl protease of human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1) has been expressed in Escherichia coli at high levels, resulting in the formation of inclusion bodies which contain denatured insoluble aggregates of the protease. After solubilization of these inclusion bodies in guanidinium chloride, the protease was purified to apparent homogeneity by a single-step reverse-phase HPLC procedure. The purified, but inactive, protein was denatured in 8 M urea and refolded to produce the active protease. Enzyme activity was demonstrated against the substrate H-Val-Ser-Gln-Asn-Tyr-Pro-Ile-Val-OH, modeled after the cleavage region between residues 128 and 135 in the HIV gag polyprotein. With this substrate, a Vmax of 1.3 +/- 0.2 mumol/(min.mg) and KM of 2.0 +/- 0.3 mM were determined at pH 5.5. Pepstatin (Iva-Val-Val-Sta-Ala-Sta-OH) and substrate analogues with the Tyr-Pro residues substituted by Sta, by Phe psi [CH2N]Pro, and by Leu psi [CH(OH)CH2]Val inhibited the protease with KI values of 360 nM, 3690 nM, 3520 nM, and less than 10 nM, respectively. All were competitive inhibitors, and the tightest binding compound provided an active site titrant for the quantitative determination of enzymatically active HIV-1 protease.

Interdomain hydrolysis of a truncated Pseudomonas exotoxin by the human immunodeficiency virus-1 protease.

The specificity of HIV-1 (human immunodeficiency virus-1) protease has been evaluated relative to its ability to cleave the three-domain Pseudomonas exotoxin (PE66) and related proteins in which the first domain has been deleted or replaced by a segment of CD4. Native PE66 is not hydrolyzed by the HIV-1 protease. However, removal of its first domain produces a molecule which is an excellent substrate for the enzyme. The major site of cleavage in this truncated exotoxin, called LysPE40, occurs in a segment that connects its two major domains, the translocation domain (II), and the ADP-ribosyltransferase (III). This interdomain region contains the sequence ...Asn-Tyr-Pro-Thr... which is similar to that surrounding the scissile Tyr-Pro bond in the gag precursor polyprotein, a natural substrate of the HIV-1 protease. Nevertheless, it is not this sequence that is recognized and cleaved by the enzyme, but one 6 residues away, ...Ala-Leu-Leu-Glu... in which the Leu-Leu peptide bond is hydrolyzed. A second, slower cleavage takes place at the Leu-Ala bond 3 residues in from the NH2 terminus of LysPE40. When domain I of PE66 is replaced by a segment comprising the first two domains of CD4, the resulting chimeric protein is hydrolyzed at the same Leu-Leu bond by HIV-1 protease. Enzyme activities toward synthetic peptides modeled after the sequences defined above in LysPE40 are in complete accord, relative to specificity, kinetics, and pH optimum, with results obtained in the hydrolysis of the parent protein. These findings demonstrate that ideas concerning the specificity of the HIV-1 protease that are based solely upon its processing of natural viral polyproteins can be expanded by evaluation of other multidomain proteins as substrates. Moreover, it would appear that it is not a particular conformation, but sequence and accessibility that play the dominant role in defining sites in a protein substrate that are susceptible to hydrolysis by the enzyme.

Discovery and structure-activity relationships of novel alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone inhibitors.

Novel D-amino acid modified, hexapeptide inhibitors of alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone (Ac-Ser-Tyr-Ser-Met-Glu-His-Phe-Arg-Trp-Gly-Lys-Pro-Val-NH2, alpha-MSH) are described. The discovery of the alpha-MSH inhibitory activity of a known somatotropin (growth hormone) secretagogue, H-His-D-Trp-Ala-Trp-D-Phe-Lys-NH2 ([His1, Lys6-]GHRP, I), and its chemical similarity to the alpha-MSH6-11 sequence provided the impetus to investigate the structure-activity relationships of MSH-GHRP hybrid analogues. In this study we compared the melanotropic activity of a series of peptides of the generic formula H-His-Xaa-Yaa-Trp-D-Phe-Lys-NH2 (H-[Xaa7, Yaa8, D-Phe10] alpha-MSH6-11-NH2) on the R. pipiens (frog) and A. carolinensis (lizard) skin in vitro bioassays. In summary, D-Phe7-Ala8 substitution (II) in the heptapeptide template yielded an MSH-like agonist of moderately low potency (EC50 ca. 10(-6) M) relative to alpha-MSH; D-Ala7-Ala8 substitution (III) abolished agonist or antagonist activity. alpha-MSH inhibition was effected by MSH-GHRP analogues having D-Trp7-Ala8, D-Arg7-Ala8, D-Trp7-Arg8 or Phe7-Arg8 substitutions. The D-Trp7-Ala8 and Phe7-Arg8 modified derivatives (I and VI) selectively inhibited alpha-MSH on the R. pipiens assay (pA2 = 4.7 and 5.8, respectively), as they did not possess antagonist (or agonist) activities on the A. carolinensis assay. In contrast, the D-Arg7-Ala8 and D-Trp7-Arg8 modified derivatives (IV and V) inhibited alpha-MSH on both the R. pipiens and A. carolinensis assays (pA2 values ranging 5.0-6.0).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Alpha-melanotropin: the minimal active sequence in the lizard skin bioassay.

alpha-Melanotropin (alpha-melanocyte-stimulating hormone, alpha-MSH) is a tridecapeptide, Ac-Ser-Tyr-Ser-Met-Glu-His-Phe-Arg-Trp-Gly-Lys-Pro-Val-NH2. The minimal sequence of alpha-MSH required for agonism in the lizard (Anolis carolinensis) skin bioassay was determined to be Ac-His-Phe-Arg-Trp-NH2 (Ac-alpha-MSH6-9-NH2). Smaller fragments of this sequence (Ac-alpha-MSH6-8-NH2, Ac-alpha-MSH6-7-NH2, Ac-alpha-MSH7-9-NH2, and Ac-alpha-MSH7-8-NH2) were devoid of melanotropic activity. The tetrapeptide, Ac-alpha-MSH7-10-NH2, was also inactive, thus again demonstrating the importance of His at position 6 for minimal activity. The important potentiating amino acids were found to be Met-4, Lys-11, and Pro-12, since Ac-alpha-MSH4-10-NH2 was about 100 times more potent than Ac-alpha-MSH5-10-NH2, and Ac-[Nle4]-alpha-MSH4-11-NH2 was about 40 times more potent than Ac-alpha-MSH4-10-NH2 or Ac-[Nle4]-alpha-MSH4-10-NH2. Ac-alpha-MSH4-12-NH2 and Ac-[Nle4]-alpha-MSH4-12-NH2 were equipotent and about six times more potent than alpha-MSH. Since [Nle4]-alpha-MSH and Ac-[Nle4]-alpha-MSH4-13-NH2 were both equipotent but about sixfold less active than Ac-[Nle4]-alpha-MSH4-12-NH2, it is clear that valine at position 13 does not contribute to the potency of alpha-MSH, except possibly in a negative way. The minimal message sequence for equipotency to alpha-MSH appears to be Ac-Met-Glu-His-Phe-Arg-Trp-Gly-Lys-NH2, since the analog, Ac-[Nle4]-alpha-MSH4-11-NH2, was as active as the native hormone. Ser-1, Tyr-2, Ser-3, Glu-5, and Val-13 are not important for melanotropic potency since Ac-alpha-MSH4-12-NH2 was more potent than alpha-MSH, and Ac-alpha-MSH5-10-NH2 and Ac-alpha-MSH6-10-NH2 were equipotent, being about 4,000 times less active than alpha-MSH.

Design, structure-activity, and molecular modeling studies of potent renin inhibitory peptides having N-terminal Nin-For-Trp (Ftr): angiotensinogen congeners modified by P1-P1' Phe-Phe, Sta, Leu psi[CH(OH)CH2]Val or leu psi[CH2NH]Val substitutions.

A structure-conformation-activity investigation of several angiotensinogen (ANG) based inhibitors of human renin modified by either Phe-Phe, Sta, Leu psi[CH2NH]Val, or Leu psi[CH(OH)CH2]Val at the P1-P1' clevage site and P5 Trp(Nin-For) (Ftr) was performed. Specifically, Ac-Ftr-Pro-Phe-His-Phe-Phe-Val-Ftr-NH2 (1) provided a potent (KI = 2.7 X 10(-8) M) P1-P1' Phe-Phe substituted renin inhibitor to initiate these studies. Substitution of the P1-P1' Phe-Phe in compound 1 by Sta effected a 1,000-fold increase in biological potency for the resultant octapeptide Ac-Ftr-Pro-Phe-His-Sta-Val-Ftr-NH2 (10; KI = 6.7 X 10(-11) M). Kinetic analysis of compound 10 showed it to be a competitive inhibitor of human renin catalyzed proteolysis of human ANG. Chemical modifications of the compounds 1 and 10 were evaluated on the basis of comparative human plasma renin inhibitory activities (IC50 values) in vitro. Carboxy-terminal truncation studies on compound 10 showed that the P2' Val and P3' Ftr residues could both be eliminated without significant loss (ca. 10-fold) in renin inhibitory activity as exemplified by the pentapeptide Ac-Ftr-Pro-Phe-His-Sta-NH2 (12; IC50 = 3.8 X 10(-9) M). In addition, the corresponding P1-P1' Leu psi[CH(OH)CH2]Val and Leu psi[CH2NH]Val derivatives of compound 12 were potent renin inhibitors: Ac-Ftr-Pro-Phe-His-Leu psi[CH(OH)CH2]Val-NH2 (13; IC50 = 3.1 X 10(-10) M) and Ac-Ftr-Pro-Phe-His-Leu psi[CH2NH]Val-NH2 (14; IC50 = 2.1 X 10(-8) M). The structure-conformation-activity properties of the N-terminal Ftr substitution of these human renin inhibitors was examined by (1) comparative analysis of several analogues of 1 and Ac-Ftr-Pro-Phe-His-Sta-Ile-NH2 (17; IC50 = 1.0 X 10(-10) M) having P5 site modifications by Trp, His, D-Ftr, and D-His, (2) deletion of the N-terminal Ftr residue from compounds 12 and 17, to provide Ac-Pro-Phe-His-Sta-Ile-NH2 (16; IC50 = 3.1 X 10(-8) M) and Ac-Pro-Phe-His-Sta-NH2 (15; IC50 = 5.6 X 10(-6) M), and (3) computer modeling and dynamics studies of compounds 1 and 17 bound to CKH-RENIN, a simulated human renin model, which were focused on identifying potential intermolecular interactions of their common P5-P2 sequence, Ac-Ftr-Pro-Phe-His, at the enzyme active site.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)