Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to J Jollès.
The purification and some molecular properties of six lysozymes from the gills of different mytilids and vesicomyids are described: they belong to the previously described Invertebrate lysozyme family. The predominance of the bacterial nutrition in these organisms seems to necessitate the presence of a lysozyme as in the case of the ruminant digestion model.
The complete 129-amino-acid sequences of two rainbow trout lysozymes (I and II) isolated from kidney were established using protein chemistry microtechniques. The two sequences differ only at position 86, I having aspartic acid and II having alanine. A cDNA clone coding for rainbow trout lysozyme was isolated from a cDNA library made from liver mRNA. Sequencing of the cloned cDNA insert, which was 1 kb in length, revealed a 432-bp open reading frame encoding an amino-terminal peptide of 15 amino acids and a mature enzyme of 129 amino acids identical in sequence to II. Forms I and II from kidney and liver were also analyzed using enzymatic amplification via PCR and direct sequencing; both organs contain mRNA encoding the two lysozymes. Evolutionary trees relating DNA sequences coding for lysozymes c and alpha-lactalbumins provide evidence that the gene duplication giving rise to conventional vertebrate lysozymes c and to lactalbumin preceded the divergence of fishes and tetrapods about 400 Myr ago. Evolutionary analysis also suggests that amino acid replacements may have accumulated more slowly on the lineage leading to fish lysozyme than on those leading to mammal and bird lysozymes.
Complete amino acid sequences are presented for lysozymes c from camel and goat stomachs and compared to sequences of other lysozymes c. Tree analysis suggests that the rate of amino acid replacement went up as soon as lysozyme was recruited for the stomach function in early ruminants. The two lysozymes from goat stomach are the products of a gene duplication that probably took place before the divergence of cow, goat, and deer about 25 million years ago. Partial sequences of three lysozymes from goat tears indicated that (a) the goat tear family of lysozymes may have diverged from the stomach lysozyme family by an ancient duplication and (b) later duplications are probably responsible for the multiple forms of tear and milk lysozymes in ruminants.
By sequencing lysozymes c from deer and pig stomachs and comparing them to the known amino acid sequences of other lysozymes c, it was possible to examine the rate of sequence change during and after the period in which this enzyme acquired a new function. Evolutionary tree analysis suggests that the rate went up while lysozyme was being recruited to function as a digestive enzyme in the stomach of early ruminants. Later, presumably after lysozyme was well adapted for functioning in the new environment, which contains acid, pepsin, and fermentation products, the rate of amino acid replacement became subnormal.
1. Two different lysozymes, designated I and II, were purified from the kidney of rainbow trout. The enzymes had isoelectric points of approximately 9.5 and 9.65, and differed in their binding characteristics to a cation exchanger. Lysozyme II had the highest specific activity against Micrococcus luteus. 2. By sodium dodecyl sulphate gel electrophoresis, a molecular mass of 14.4 kDa was established for the two lysozymes. 3. For both type I and II enzymes, optimum pH under the present conditions was 5.5 and optimum temperature (at pH 6.2) around 45 degrees C. 4. N-terminal amino acid sequence determination indicated that the two trout lysozymes were c-type lysozymes. 5. The fish lysozymes had a much higher rate of diffusion in agar than did the other lysozymes tested (possibly due to less interaction with agarose). This implies that a foreign lysozyme, such as hen egg white lysozyme, should not be used as a standard when assaying lysozyme activity with the lysoplate technique.
The complete amino acid sequence (186 amino acid residues) of a basic cytosolic protein from bovine brain has been determined. It was previously described as a phosphatidylethanolamine binding protein. Computer analyses have been used to calculate its hydropathy profile and to predict its secondary structure. Comparison with other proteins did not detect any significant sequence similarity, except for a short region which presents 53% sequence homology with bovine phosphatidylcholine transfer protein.
The N-terminal sequence (residues 1-101) of trypsin-link protein from cartilage proteoglycan complex is reported: it presents structural homologies with the poly-Ig receptor and immunoglobulin domains.
The complete amino acid sequence (458 amino acid residues) of human group-specific component 2 (Gc2) protein was determined. Computer analyses established a three-fold internal homology of Gc2 protein as well as an extensive homology between the overall structures of Gc2 protein, human serum albumin and human alpha-fetoprotein.
41 Amino acid long N-terminal sequences of the three major human vitamin D-binding proteins (group-specific components Gc1F, Gc1S and Gc2) were characterized: they were identical. By computer analyses, the alignment of this N-terminal sequence with several sequences of human serum pre-proalbumin and human pre-alpha-fetoprotein was established.
The complete amino acid sequence (703 amino acid residues) of human lactotransferrin has been determined. The location of the disulfide bridges has also been investigated. Computer analysis established internal homology of the two domains (residues 1-338 and residues 339-703). Each domain contains a single iron-binding site and a single glycosylation site (asparagine residues 137 and 490) located in homologous positions. Prediction of the secondary structure of the two homologous moieties of human lactotransferrin has also been performed. The present results allowed a series of comparisons to be made with human serum transferrin and hen ovotransferrin.
A hexapeptide obtained from human casein by enzymatic digestion has been purified, sequenced and synthesized; its structure is: Val-Glu-Pro-Ile-Pro-Tyr. In vitro this hexapeptide stimulates the phagocytosis of opsonized sheep red blood cells by murine peritoneal macrophages. Administered intravenously to adult mice, it enhances the resistance to infection with Klebsiella pneumoniae.
The present report develops our previous structural data concerning the cyanogen bromide fragments from the bovine nasal cartilage proteoglycan monomers. Among the reported sequences a Met-Ile-Trp-His sequence was characterized, useful for future studies devoted to the molecular cloning of the proteoglycan monomers.
Mare lactotransferrin has been purified and analyzed. Its molecular mass is 81 kDa. A 28 amino acid long N-terminal sequence was established and a first series of comparisons with other transferrins was performed.
The complete sequence of 129 amino acids has been determined for one of three closely related lysozymes c purified from cow stomach mucosa. The sequence differs from those known for 17 other lysozymes c at 39-60 positions, at one of which there has been a deletion of 1 amino acid. The glutamate replacement at position 101 and the deletion of proline at position 102 eliminate the aspartyl-prolyl bond that is present between these positions in all other mammalian lysozymes c tested. This bond appears to be the most acid-sensitive one in such lysozymes at physiological temperature. Of the 40 positions previously found to be invariant among lysozymes c, only one has undergone substitution in the cow lineage. This modest number of changes at novel positions is consistent with the inference, based on tree analysis and antigenic comparisons, that the tempo of evolutionary change in the cow lysozyme lineage has not been radically different from that in other lysozyme c lineages. The mutations responsible for the distinctive catalytic properties and stability of cow lysozyme c could be a minor fraction of the total that have been fixed in the cow lineage.
The present review is focused on the main achievements realized in the lysozyme research field since the meeting held in 1972 to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the discovery of this enzyme. Despite of extensive structural, physico-chemical, crystallographic, genetic, immunological and evolutionary studies devoted to lysozymes, their biological role is still not exactly known.
A non-specific esterase activity of hen lysozyme (c-type) has previously been described: histidine was claimed to be involved in this activity. The present letter reports that a histidine-less lysozyme from the duck egg-white (c-type) as well as a goose lysozyme (g-type) possess such an esterase activity determined using p-nitrophenylacetate.
Cyanogen bromide treatment of bovine nasal cartilage proteoglycan monomer gave rise to three major fractions (CN-1 to CN-3), isolated by Sepharose CL-6B chromatography. The uronate-rich fraction in the void volume (CN-1) digested with chondroitinase ABC (C treatment) yielded a fragment (CN-1 C/6B) with a unique N-terminal sequence. The same fraction, when digested sequentially by chondroitinase ABC and trypsin (CT treatment), was resolved into two distinct fractions, CN-1 CT/6B-1 and CN-1 CT/6B-2. CN-1 CT/6B-1 consisted in a keratan sulfate-rich region, representing the N-terminal moiety of the CN-1 fraction; these data suggested, according to the model of the proteoglycan monomer structure described by Heinegard, D. and Axelsson, I. (1977) J. Biol. Chem. 252, 1971-1979, that its C-terminal moiety is localized at the end of the core bearing the chondroitin sulfate chains. CN-1 CT/6B-2 contained two fragments from the chondroitin sulfate-bearing region: one of them has been submitted to Edman degradation. The CN-2 fraction upon chondroitinase and trypsin treatments gave rise to a keratan-bearing region (CN-2 CT/6B-1) and a mannose-rich region (CN-2 CT/6B-2). After reduction and alkylation of CN-2, the N-terminal sequence of the isolated major fragment (CN-2 RA/6B-1) was determined. The CN-3 fraction revealed a pattern upon electrophoresis similar to that of the cyanogen bromide-treated hyaluronic acid-binding region.
In this review article, human lactotransferrin is compared to human serum transferrin and hen ovotransferrin. For the first time the possibility of a 6-fold internal homology of the transferrins is raised: a scheme in which 6 domains are defined is reported; two of them with the highest homology seem to be implicated in the 2 iron binding sites of each transferrin. The location of the disulfide bridges of the 3 transferrins and of their prosthetic sugar groups is discussed: some not yet described half-cystine containing lactotransferrin peptides are indicated.