Search results for " Protease"

The deubiquitinase USP11 is a versatile and conserved regulator of autophagy

2021

Autophagy is a major cellular quality control system responsible for the degradation of proteins and organelles in response to stress and damage to maintain homeostasis. Ubiquitination of autophagy-related proteins or regulatory components is important for the precise control of autophagy pathways. Here, we show that the deubiquitinase ubiquitin-specific protease 11 (USP11) restricts autophagy and that KO of USP11 in mammalian cells results in elevated autophagic flux. We also demonstrate that depletion of the USP11 homolog H34C03.2 in Caenorhabditis elegans triggers hyperactivation of autophagy and protects the animals against human amyloid-β peptide 42 aggregation-induced paralysis. USP11…

Asymmetric One-Pot Synthesis of (3R,3aS,6aR)-Hexahydrofuro[2,3-b]furan-3-ol: A Key Component of Current HIV Protease Inhibitors

2017

A concise and efficient synthesis of (3R,3aS,6aR)-hexahydrofuro[2,3-b]furan-3-ol, a key building block for several clinical and experimental HIV protease inhibitors including the highly important drug darunavir, was achieved via a one-pot procedure using furan and Cbz-protected glycol aldehyde as starting materials. A [2+2]-photocycloaddition between both reactants which can be prepared from wood-based starting materials according to the principles of xylochemistry, followed by hydrogenation and lipase-catalyzed kinetic resolution afforded the target compound in high yield and up to 99% ee.

Identification, Characterization and Synthesis of Natural Parasitic Cysteine Protease Inhibitors – More Potent Falcitidin Analogs

2021

ABSTRACTProtease inhibitors represent a promising therapeutic option for the treatment of parasitic diseases such as malaria and human African trypanosomiasis. Falcitidin was the first member of a new class of inhibitors of falcipain-2, a cysteine protease of the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. Using a metabolomics dataset of 25 Chitinophaga strains for molecular networking enabled identification of over 30 natural analogs of falcitidin. Based on MS/MS spectra, they vary in their amino acid chain length, sequence, acyl residue, and C-terminal functionalization; therefore, they were grouped into the four falcitidin peptide families A-D. The isolation, characterization and absolute st…

Production and characterization of the recombinant Sphingomonas chlorophenolica pentachlorophenol 4-monooxygenase.

2001

Abstract Pentachlorophenol 4-monooxygenase (PCP4MO) from Sphingomonas chlorophenolica is a flavoprotein that hydroxylates PCP in the presence of NADPH and oxygen. In order to investigate the structure and function of active site, recombinant PCP4MO (rePCP4MO) was produced in Escherichia coli as a glutathione S-transferase (GST) fusion protein. Moreover, a tobacco etch virus (TEV) protease cleavage site (EKLYFQG) was introduced into GST-PCP4MO and a his-tagged TEV protease was employed. Hence, a two-step purification protocol was developed which allowed obtaining 15–20 mg of rePCP4MO from 1 L culture. The rePCP4MO revealed identity with native enzyme by SDS–PAGE and N-terminal sequence analy…

Substrate specificity screening of oat (Avena sativa) seeds aminopeptidase demonstrate unusually broad tolerance in S1 pocket.

2012

Aminopeptidases are proteolytic enzymes that remove one amino acid at a time from N-terminus of peptidic substrates. In plants, inhibitors of aminopeptidases can find potential applications in agriculture as herbicides. In this report we have used a library of fluorogenic derivatives of natural and unnatural amino acids for substrate specificity profiling of oat (Avena sativa) aminopeptidase. Interestingly, we have found that this enzyme recognizes effectively among the natural amino acids basic residues like Arg and Lys, hydrophobic Phe, Leu and Met, but also to some extent acidic residues Asp and Glu. In the case of unnatural amino acids hydrophobic residues (hPhe and hCha) and basic hArg…

[60]Fullerene l -Amino Acids and Peptides: Synthesis under Phase-Transfer Catalysis Using a Phosphine–Borane Linker. Electrochemical Behavior

2017

International audience; A new method to link amino acid and peptide derivatives to [60]fullerene is described. It uses hydrophosphination with a secondary phosphine borane. First, the stereoselective synthesis of secondary phosphine borane amino acid derivatives was achieved by alkylation of phenylphosphine borane with gamma-iodo-alpha-amino ester reagents under phase transfer catalysis (PTC). Second, a sec-phosphine borane amino ester was saponified and coupled with alpha,gamma-diamino esters to afford the corresponding dipeptide derivatives in good yields. Finally, the hydrophosphination reaction of [60]fullerene by the sec-phosphine borane compounds was performed under PTC to obtain C-60…

Synthesis and Molecular Modeling Studies of Derivatives of a Highly Potent Peptidomimetic Vinyl Ester as Falcipain-2 Inhibitors

2012

Herein we report the synthesis of a set of constrained peptidomimetics endowed with an electrophilic vinyl ester warhead and structurally related to a previously identified lead compound, a potent and irreversible inhibitor of falcipain-2 (FP-2). FP-2 is the main hemoglobinase of the malaria parasite P. falciparum. The new compounds were evaluated for their inhibition against FP-2, and the results were rationalized on the basis of docking experiments. These studies underscore the pivotal role of both the ester function at the P1' site and the trifluoromethyl group of the P3 side chain in determining the correct orientation of the Michael acceptor warhead in the catalytic site, and as a cons…

1,2,4-OSSADIAZOLI: UTILI SCAFFOLD NEL DESIGN DI NUOVI FARMACI

2021

Mast cells as protectors of health.

2019

Mast cells (MCs), which are well known for their effector functions in T(H)2-skewed allergic and also autoimmune inflammation, have become increasingly acknowledged for their role in protection of health. It is now clear that they are also key modulators of immune responses at interface organs, such as the skin or gut. MCs can prime tissues for adequate inflammatory responses and cooperate with dendritic cells in T-cell activation. They also regulate harmful immune responses in trauma and help to successfully orchestrate pregnancy. This review focuses on the beneficial effects of MCs on tissue homeostasis and elimination of toxins or venoms. MCs can enhance pathogen clearance in many bacter…

Biochemical and structural analysis of the NS5B RNA-dependent RNA polymerase of the hepatitis C virus.

2000

Hepatitis C virus (HCV), the major causative agent of chronic and sporadic non-A, non-B hepatitis worldwide, is a distinct member of the Flaviviridae virus family. These viruses have in common a plus-strand RNA genome that is replicated in the cytoplasm of the infected cell via minus-strand RNA intermediates. Owing to the lack of reliable cell culture systems and convenient animal models for HCV, the mechanisms governing RNA replication are not known. As a first step towards the development of appropriate in vitro systems, we expressed the NS5B RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) in insect cells, purified the protein to near homogeneity and studied its biochemical properties. It is a primer…