• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.40 no.1
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• pp.12-16
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• 2004

Acid proteinase has been discovered in Aspergillus niger (acid protease A) and Cryphonectria parasitica (acid proteinase EapC) and it plays major roles in cheese formation from milk. In this study, a partial gene encoding acid proteinase in Penicillium oxalicum HCLF-34 was cloned by using PCR with degenerate primers corresponding to highly conserved regions of the acid proteinase. The partial acid proteinase gene in P. oxalicum HCLF-34 contains an open reading frame of 438 base pairs and encodes an acid proteinase protein of 146 amino aicds. The predicted amino acid sequences showed 71 % homology with acid protease A and 67% homology with EapC.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.115-124
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• 1969

The mash of Takjoo, Korean flour wine, is fermented through two brewing processes ; the primary brewing process to saccharify and the main one to produce ethyl alcohol. The activities of acid proteinase (pH3), weak acid proteinase (pH 6), and alkaline proteinase (Ph 80 on the processes are determined with time by the Folin phenol method as a strength of casein digestion. Hydrogen ion concentration, the content of total organic acids, protein, free amino acids and oligopeptides, which effect the activities of proteinase, are also measured. The results are briefly summarized as follows : 1. In general, the activities of acid proteinase and weak acid proteinase in the mesh of primary brewing process are stronger than those in main brewing process. 2. The activities of acid proteinase are remarkably stronger than those of weak acid proteinase in both processes. It reveals that they decrease slowly through the fermentation. Activities of alkaline proteinase are weaker than others. 3. As the raw materials are mixtured, the total amount of organic acids is equivalent to 0.150 mg/ml acetic acid in the mesh of primary brewing process and 0.02 mg/ml acetic acid in the main one. They increase gradually with time. 4. Hydrogen ion concnetration shows 3.9 in the mesh of main brewing process and 3.28 in the primary one. They increase to the maximum in 60-72 hrs., and decrease since 108 hrs. 5. The content of crude protein shows 66.90mg/ml in the mesh of main brewing process, while shows 64.29mg/ml in the mesh of primary one. they decrease slowly with time. it seems that a small content of crude protein, as a substrate, converts into amino acids and soluble nitrogen compounds by proteinase. 6. The content of free amino acids and oligopeptides shows 0.36 mg/ml in the mesh of primary brewing process and 0.24mg/ml in the main brewing process. It is evident that the reason they increase continuously through the fermentation is the effect of proteinase. 7. According to the results, the strong activities of proteinase in primary brewing process has been derived from the decrease of hydrogen ion concentration due to the production of organic acids.

• Microbiology and Biotechnology Letters
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.116-122
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• 2002

The partial 165 rDNA sequences of 6 lactic acid bacterial strains isolated from Kimchi were determined. Two strains were Leuconostoc mesenteroides and the rest were incorrectly classified and turned out to be Lactobacillus. As the case of dairy lactic acid bacteria, the strains isolated from Kimchi also had cell-envelope proteinase (CEP) activity. As the result of partial CEP gene amplification with CEP-specific primers, the expected 1.2-kb amplificate was obtained not from Leu. mesenteroides but from Lactobacillus strains. The deduced amino acid sequence of PCR product amplified from the genomic DNA of Lactobacillus pentosus KFR1821 showed 95％ and 92％ homology with those of PrtPs from Lactococcus lactis subsp. cremoris and Lactobacillus paracasei subsp. paracasei, respectively. The PCR amplificate was used as a probe and the result of Southern hybridization illuminated the location of CEP gene in chromosomal DNA of Lb. pentosus KFR1821.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.231-242
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• 1994

Pnragonimus westermnni, the lung fluke, is known to migrate to the pulmonary tissue of mammalian hosts and causes pathological changes in the lungs. An acidic thiol-dependent proteinase with a molecular weight of approximately 20,000 daltons was purified to homogeneity using ion-exchange chromatography and gel filtration chromatography. On SDS-PAGE, the molecular weight of the enzyme was 17,500 daltons. Isoelectric point was 6.45. The enzyme was similar to the acidic cysteine proteinase of vertebrates in the properties of pH optimum, substrate specificity and inhibitor sensitivity. Enzymatic activity was stable at pH 5.5 for at least two days when stored at 4℃. The cysteine proteinase was capable of degrading collagen and hemoglobin. Sera of patients with paragonimiasis and mice infected with R westermani reacted in immunoblots with the partially purified proteinase. This result suggested that the cysteine proteinase of P. westermnni may play a role in migration in tissues, and in acquisition of nutrients by parasites from the host. It is also potentially an antigen for the serodiagnosis of paragonimiasis.

• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.14-19
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• 2000

Algal lytic enzyme, an extracellular enzyme, was purified from the culture filtrate of Penicillium oxalicum(HCLF-34) by ultrafiltration, gel filtration chromatography, and anion exchange chromatography. The enzyme has a molecular mass of approximately 22 kDa, an it is a monomer by renaturation SDS-PAGE. The amino acid sequences of the enzyme was revealed to be NH2-Glu-Ser-Tyr-Ser-Ser-Asn-Ala-Ala-Gly-Ala-Val-Leu-Ile---, had about 84% identity with the mature light chain of aspergillopepsin II precursor and 81% identity with the mature protein of the acid proteinase EapC precursor.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.95-106
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• 1988

Specific or non-specific cytolytic processes of free-living amoebae causing meningoencephalitls have been emphasized and the cytolytic ability related to hydrolases in Entantoeba sp. and Naegleria sp. has also been reported since the latter half of 1970's. However, no information on hydrolase activities in Acanthamoeba sp. is available. Hydrolases in Acanthamoeba culbertsoni, a pathogenic species of free-living amoebae, were assayed and compared with those in a non-pathogenic species, A. royreba. Pathogenicity of these two species was confirmed through experimental infection to BALB/c mice. Hydrolase activities and cytotoxic effects between pathogenic and non.pathogenic species were compared in the trophozoites cultured in CGV media and in CHO cell line, respectively. The results are summarized as follows: 1. The mice infected with A. culbertseni were all dead 15 days after nasal inoculation, and the mean survival time was 8.5 days. Also the mice infected with this pathogenic species manifested typical meningoencephalitis, whereas the mice infected with A. royreba did not. 2. Hydrolases detected both in the cell extracts and culture media were acid phosphatase, ${\beta}-N-acetyl$ galactosaminidase, ${\beta}-N-acetyl$ glucosaminidase, ${\alpha}-mannosidase$, neutral proteinase and acid proteinase, all of which were detected with remarkably higher rate in A. culbertsoni than in A. royreba. 3. A. cuzbertsoni revealed strong cytotoxicity for the target CHO cells, whereas A. royreba did not show any specific cytotoxicity. About 80% of the target cells mixed with A. culbertsoni were dead 48 hours after cultivation, and more than 95% of the target cells were dead 72 hours after cultivation. 4. Hydrolase activities in A. culbertsoni cultured with the target cell line were assayed according to the culture time. The activities of acid phosphatase, ${\beta}-N-acetyl$ galactosaminidase, ${\beta}-N-acetyl$ glucosaminidase, ${\alpha}-mannosidase$ and acid proteinase in this pathogenic amoeba were detected higher in amoeba extracts than in culture media up to 120 hours after cultivation, but after 120 hours of cultivation those activities were detected higher in culture media than in the amoeba Iysates. Neutral proteinase activity in A. culbertsoni increased more in EBSS medium than in the Iysate specimens although the activity in the extracts was generally steady according to the cultivation time. Summarizing the above results, it is concluded that there were differences in hydrolase activities between Pathogenic A. culbertsoni and non-pathogenic A. royreba, and that some hydrolase activities were detected remarkably higher in A. culbertsoni which revealed strong cytotoxicity to the target CHO cell line.

• BMB Reports
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.380-385
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• 1996

Ovomucoid third domain is a serine proteinase inhibitor protein which consists of 56 amino acid residues. A fifty picosecond molecular dynamics (MD) simulation was carried out for ovomucoid third domain protein with 5 $\AA$ layer of water molecules. A comparison of main chain atoms in the MD averaged structure with the crystal structure showed that most of the backbone structures are maintained during the simulation. Investigation of the intramolecular hydrogen bondings indicated that most of the interactions between main chain atoms were conserved, whereas those between side chains were reorganized for the period of the simulation. Especially, the side chain interactions around the scissile bond of reactive site P1 (Met18) were found to be more extensive for the MD structures. During the simulation, hydrogen bonds were maintained between the side chains of Glu19 and Arg21 as well as those of Thr17 and Glu19. Extensive side chain interactions observed in the MD structures may shed light on the question of why protein proteinase inhibitors are strong inhibitors for proteinases rather than good substrates.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.159-166
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• 2000

The present study intended to verify activities of cysteine proteinase of Pneumocystis carinii from rats and to purify the enzyme. In order to exclude the contamination of host-derived enzymes, concentrates of P. carinii was primarily treated with a mixture of proteinase inhibitors before Iysis of P carinii. A 68-kDa cysteine proteinase was finally purified from the crude extract of P. carinii by 4 sequential chromatographic methods. The enzyme showed an optimal activity at pH 5.5 in 0.1 M sodium acetate, and its activity was specifically inhibited by L-trans-epoxy-succinylleucylamido (4-guanidino) butane (E-64) and iodoacetic acid, suggesting that the enzyme is a cysteine proteinase. The 68-kDa proteinase weakly digested rnacrornolecules such as collagen, hemoglobin and fibronectin. The present study demonstrated the activity of cysteine proteinase at the 68-kDa band of P. carinii, and purified and characterized the molecule.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.49 no.4
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• pp.342-348
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• 2004

Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of the $60\%$ isopropanol extract of soybean(Glycine max [L.] Merr.) seed revealed two abundant proteins with molecular masses of 19 and 10 kDa. Amino acid analysis revealed that the isopropanol-extractable protein fraction was rich in cysteine. Two-dimensional gel electro-phoretic analysis indicated that the 19kDa and 10kDa proteins had pI of 4.2 and 4.0 respectively. Peptide mass fingerprints of trypsin digests of the two proteins obtained using matrix-assisted, laser desorption/ionization-time of flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectroscopy revealed the 19kDa protein was Kunitz trypsin inhibitor and the 10kDa protein was Bowman-Birk proteinase inhibitor. When resolved under non-denaturing conditions, the isopropanol-extracted proteins inhibited trypsin and chymotrypsin activity. Results presented in this study demonstrate that isopropanol extraction of soybean seed could be used as a simple and rapid method to obtain a protein fraction enriched in Kunitz trypsin and Bowman-Birk proteinase inhibitors. Since proteinase inhibitors are rich in sulfur amino acids and are putative anticarcinogens, this rapid and inexpensive isolation procedure could facilitate efforts in nutrition and cancer research.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.35 no.1
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• pp.39-46
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• 1997

The present study was undertaken to determine whether live T. uaginnlis degrades human secretory IgA, serum If and IgG molecules. Human immunoglobulins were exposed to live trophozoites, parasite Iysate, and excretory-secretory product (ESP) of T ucginnlis. To determine the fragmentation of immunoglobulins, the reaction sample was subjected to SDS-PAGE and EITB, and peroxidase conjugated antihuman IgA and IgG were used as probes. Live trophozoites degraded secretory IgA, serum IgA and IgG, and degradation were pressed forward by the prolongation of the incubation time and by increasing the number of trichomonads respectively. Also the Iysates and ESP of trichomonads degraded IgA and IgG. The cysteine and serine proteinase inhibitors such as I-64, antipain, iodoacetic acid, iodoacetamide, TLCK reduced the ability of cleaving immunoglobulins. The proteinase activity and cytotoxicity of T. uaginnlis to HeLa cells were decreased when live T. vusinalis was treated with metallo-proteinase inhibitor as well as cysteine and serine proteinase inhibitors. These results suggest that proteinase secreted from live T ucginclis may play a part role in host pathogenesis by T. uosinnlis, and the cleaving ability of host immunoglobulins by the proteinase may contribute as a one of immune evasion mechanism for parasite survival in the host.