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K F Austen

Publications and source records attributed to K F Austen.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1992

Isolation, characterization, and transcription of the gene encoding mouse mast cell protease 7.

A gene that encodes mouse mast cell protease (mMCP) 7 (also known as mouse mast cell tryptase 2) was isolated by genomic cloning with a cDNA that encodes mMCP-6, a tryptase in serosal mast cells. cDNAs encoding mMCP-7 were isolated from a bone-marrow-derived mast cell cDNA library. The mMCP-7 gene spans 2.3 kilobases and contains five exons rather than six, as found in the mMCP-6 and human mast cell tryptase I genes. Comparison of the 5' end of the transcript with the genomic sequence indicated that the region corresponding to the first intron in the mMCP-6 and human tryptase I genes is not spliced during transcription of mMCP-7 mRNA because of a point mutation at the intron 1 acceptor splice site; this results in a 5' untranslated region of 195 nucleotides, which is longer than that of any other known mast cell-specific transcript. mMCP-7 is 71-76% homologous with mMCP-6 and with dog and human mast cell tryptases, and it is the most acidic mast cell protease, with an overall net charge of -10. RNA blot analyses revealed that the mMCP-7 gene is transcribed in bone-marrow-derived mast cells but is not transcribed in mature serosal mast cells or in mucosal mast cell-enriched intestinal tissue of Trichinella spiralis-infected mice. Transcription of the mMCP-7 gene by differentiating bone-marrow-derived mast cells occurred within 1 week of bone-marrow culture but decreased dramatically after 3 weeks. Thus, the mMCP-7 gene displays a number of unusual structural characteristics and is distinctive in its transient and selective expression in immature mast cells maintained in interleukin 3-enriched medium.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1992

Leukotriene C4 uses a probenecid-sensitive export carrier that does not recognize leukotriene B4.

The export of leukotriene (LT) C4 from human eosinophils, a carrier-mediated process that is temperature-dependent and saturable, was characterized further in eosinophils and in two human leukemia cell lines that do not present an intact 5-lipoxygenase pathway. In eosinophils, KG-1 cells, and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO)-differentiated HL-60 cells, the respective Q10 values for temperature-dependent LTC4 export were 3.7, 3.3, and 3.4 and for energy of activation were 28.2 kcal/mol, 23.0 kcal/mol, and 27.8 kcal/mol (1 kcal = 4.18 kJ). When human eosinophils, KG-1 cells, and DMSO-differentiated HL-60 cells were preloaded with defined amounts of intracellular LTC4 by incubation with LTA4 and with incremental amounts of a glutathione conjugate, S-dinitrophenyl glutathione (GS-DNP) by sequential incubation with 1-chloro-2,4-dinitrobenzene, GS-DNP inhibited the export of LTC4 in a dose-dependent manner. By plotting the ratio of total GS-DNP (cell retained plus released) to the sum of total GS-DNP plus total LTC4 against the percentage inhibition of LTC4 release, IC40 values of 0.839, 0.803, and 0.841 were obtained for eosinophils, KG-1 cells, and DMSO-differentiated HL-60 cells, respectively. When cells preloaded with LTC4 were resuspended in incremental concentrations of the organic acid transport inhibitor, probenecid, there was a dose-dependent decrease in LTC4 release; GS-DNP and probenecid inhibited LTC4 release in a cumulative fashion, whereas neither inhibited the release of LTB4 from preloaded nondifferentiated HL-60 cells. Therefore, LTC4 export from cells of bone marrow origin occurs through a probenecid-sensitive membrane carrier shared by other glutathione conjugates and distinct from the LTB4 carrier export system.

Carrier Proteins↗
PubMed1992

Purification of human leukotriene C4 synthase.

Leukotriene (LT) C4 synthase, the enzyme that catalyzes the conjugation of LTA4 with reduced glutathione to form LTC4, was purified to homogeneity from the KG-1 myeloid cell line after solubilization of the microsomes utilizing a combination of 0.4% sodium deoxycholate and 0.4% Triton X-102. The solubilized enzyme was then applied to an S-hexyl-glutathione-agarose column that was eluted by the use of 7.5 mM probenecid. After removal of the probenecid by sequential concentration and dilution in an Amicon concentrator, the enzyme was additionally purified and concentrated by binding to and elution from approximately 75 mg of S-hexyl-glutathione-agarose. The enzyme was further resolved by electrophoresis with a nondenaturing Tris-glycine gel, and the LTC4 synthase activity was localized to slices 3 and 4. When the remainder of the eluate from the nondenaturing gel was precipitated by acetone and analyzed by 14% SDS/PAGE with silver staining, a single protein band of 18 kDa was associated with LTC4 synthase activity and was not present in the eluates of slices lacking activity. The overall recovery was 12.5%. In a separate preliminary purification, in which the yield was only approximately 1%, the eluates of the nondenaturing gel had also revealed a single protein of 18 kDa by SDS/PAGE, which was present only in the eluates with LTC4 synthase activity. These data identify LTC4 synthase as a protein of 18 kDa, a size consistent with its membership in the microsomal glutathione S-transferase family.

Chromatography, Affinity↗
PubMed1992

Translation and granule localization of mouse mast cell protease-5. Immunodetection with specific antipeptide Ig.

An antibody to mouse mast cell protease-5 (MMCP-5) was obtained by immunizing a rabbit with a 17-residue synthetic peptide corresponding to the unique amino acid sequence at residues 146 to 162 in this serine protease. After affinity purification, anti-MMCP-5(146-162) Ig reacted in SDS-PAGE immunoblots to recombinant MMCP-5 and to the native MMCP-5 protein present in the lysates of mouse serosal mast cells and the MC5 line of Kirsten sarcoma virus-immortalized mouse mast cells. Immunocytochemical staining localized MMCP-5 to the cytoplasmic granules of serosal mast cells and Kirsten sarcoma virus-immortalized mouse mast cells. Because mouse bone marrow-derived mast cells express abundant amounts of MMCP-5 mRNA, anti-MMCP-5(146-162) Ig was used to study the translation and granule accumulation of this protease when progenitor cells differentiate into these immature mouse mast cells. Maximal expression of MMCP-5 mRNA occurred after bone marrow cells had been cultured for 2 wk in IL-3-rich WEHI-3 cell conditioned medium, and MMCP-5 protein was detected in these cells. However, electron-microscopic analysis with gold-labeled antibody revealed that the amount of MMCP-5 in the individual granules of bone marrow-derived mast cells varied. The highest concentration of MMCP-5 was found in the most electron-dense secretory granules of the cells. These studies demonstrate the ultrastructural localization of the earliest transcribed mouse mast cell chymase, MMCP-5, and its granule accumulation during the differentiation of mouse bone marrow progenitor cells into immature mouse mast cells.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1992

IL-10 induces transcription of the gene for mouse mast cell protease-1, a serine protease preferentially expressed in mucosal mast cells of Trichinella spiralis-infected mice.

Mouse bone marrow-derived mast cells (BMMC) obtained by culturing progenitor cells with rIL-3 express mouse mast cell protease (MMCP)-5 mRNA but not MMCP-1 mRNA or MMCP-4 mRNA. In terms of mast cell differentiation, these transcripts encode one early-expressed and two late-expressed chymases, respectively. cDNA and cRNA probes were used in RNase protection assays and RNA blot analyses to study the expression of these three homologous protease genes in cultured mast cells and in helminth-infected mice. Intestinal tissue from Trichinella spiralis-infected mice, containing high numbers of mucosal mast cells, had abundant amounts of MMCP-1 mRNA but only minimal amounts of the serosal mast cell transcript that encodes MMCP-4. Exposure of mouse BMMC to rIL-10-induced transcription of the MMCP-1 gene but not the MMCP-4 gene, and a cDNA encoding MMCP-1 was obtained from these rIL-10-treated cells. The expression of MMCP-1 mRNA in BMMC depended on the continuous exposure of these cells to rIL-10, and the level of MMCP-1 mRNA (but not MMCP-5 mRNA) was substantially higher in BMMC maintained in rIL-4 and rIL-10 than in rIL-3 and rIL-10 or in rIL-3, rIL-4, and rIL-10. Thus, whereas rIL-3 elicits transcription of early expressed genes in cultured mast cells, it suppresses the transcription of late-expressed genes. These in vitro and in vivo transcription studies also indicate that rIL-10 preferentially induces differentiation of mouse progenitor cells in a mucosal mast cell-specific lineage, and that expression of granule serine protease genes is regulated in a subclass-specific manner in mouse mucosal mast cells and serosal mast cells.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1992

Transcriptional regulation of the mucosal mast cell-specific protease gene, MMCP-2, by interleukin 10 and interleukin 3.

Although transcription of mast cell (MC) secretory granule neutral protease genes has been shown to distinguish MC subclasses in mucosal and serosal environments, the specific cytokines that regulate the expression of these genes have not been determined. To examine cytokine-mediated gene regulation, bone marrow-derived MC (BMMC) differentiated in vitro were obtained by culturing mouse bone marrow progenitor cells in the presence of WEHI-3 cell-conditioned medium, concanavalin A-stimulated splenocyte-conditioned medium (BMMCC), or recombinant (r) interleukin (IL)-3 (BMMCIL-3). All three populations of BMMC expressed the serosal MC-specific transcripts that encode mouse MC serine protease (MMCP)-5, MMCP-6, and MC carboxypeptidase A. However, only BMMCC contained MMCP-2 mRNA, a late expressed gene selectively transcribed by intestinal mucosal MC that proliferate during helminthic infestation in response to the T cell-derived cytokines IL-3, IL-4, and IL-10. When BMMCIL-3 were exposed to rIL-10 in the presence of either rIL-3 or rIL-4, they expressed MMCP-2 mRNA. Not only was the transcription of the MMCP-2 gene in BMMC dependent on continuous exposure of the cells to rIL-10, but the level of MMCP-2 mRNA in these cells could be down-regulated by rIL-3. These studies comparing the effects of two cytokines on the transcriptional regulation of secretory granule protease genes in MC demonstrate that rIL-10 induces BMMCIL-3 to express the mucosal MC protease MMCP-2, that rIL-3 attenuates the rIL-10-induced expression of this gene, and that transcription of the MMCP-2 gene is reversed in the absence of rIL-10.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Differential expression of secretory granule proteases in mouse mast cells exposed to interleukin 3 and c-kit ligand.

It is now established that the subclasses of mast cells (MC) that reside in mucosal and serosal environments can be distinguished from one another in terms of their expression of specific secretory granule-localized proteases and proteoglycans. Further, the hematopoietic- and connective tissue-derived cytokines that regulate expression of the genes that encode these constituents of the granule can now be identified using recently developed gene-specific probes and recombinant cytokines. When bone marrow-derived MC (BMMC) were developed with recombinant interleukin 3 (rIL-3) and maintained with this cytokine in the absence or presence of recombinant c-kit ligand (rKL), they remained safranin-, produced almost no 35S-labeled heparin proteoglycans, and contained greater levels of mouse MC protease (MMCP) -5 mRNA and mast cell carboxypeptidase A (MC-CPA) mRNA than MMCP-6 mRNA. They did not contain MMCP-4 or -2 mRNA, genes expressed late in the differentiation of progenitor cells into serosal and mucosal MCs, respectively. In contrast, BMMC developed with rKL alone or by sequential culture in medium containing rIL-3 followed by rKL expressed high levels of MMCP-4 and -6 mRNA, as well as the transcripts that encode MMCP-5 and MC-CPA. Although rKL-developed BMMC were safranin+ and produced substantial amounts of 35S-labeled heparin proteoglycans, they contained only minimal amounts of histamine and MC-CPA enzymatic activity relative to serosal MC. These are the first studies to characterize the transcriptional granule phenotype of a population of BMMC derived using any recombinant cytokine, to demonstrate a dissociation between histochemical staining and granule maturation, and to demonstrate antagonistic regulation of late expressed protease genes by a cytokine.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Secretory granule mediator release and generation of oxidative metabolites of arachidonic acid via Fc-IgG receptor bridging in mouse mast cells.

The releases of beta-hexosaminidase, LTC4, LTB4, and PGD2 after the bridging of Fc gamma R3 were assessed in mouse IL-3-dependent bone marrow-derived progenitor mast cells (BMMC), BMMC maintained in coculture with 3T3 fibroblasts separated by a filter to achieve maturation of the granules toward those of a serosal mast cell (SMC), and SMC that are the prototype of a mouse connective tissue mast cell. Bridging of Fc gamma R on BMMC with the 2.4G2 rat anti-Fc gamma RII/III mAb and anti-rat IgG elicited only 4% net release of beta-hexosaminidase and 4, 2, and 1 ng/10(6) cells of immunoreactive LTC4, LTB4, and PGD2, respectively. Bridging of Fc-IgE receptors (Fc epsilon R) on BMMC yielded 35% net release of beta-hexosaminidase and 9, 4, and 3 ng/10(6) cells of immunoreactive LTC4, LTB4, and PGD2, respectively. BMMC maintained in coculture responded to the bridging of Fc gamma R with statistically significant increases in the net percent release of beta-hexosaminidase to 16% and in the generation of immunoreactive LTC4 to 11 ng/10(6) cells, but without a significant change in the production of either LTB4 or PGD2. Bridging of Fc epsilon R on cocultured mast cells yielded a net percent release of beta-hexosaminidase and lipid mediator amounts and profile similar to those for BMMC. Bridging of Fc gamma R on purified mouse SMC resulted in a maximal net percent release of beta-hexosaminidase of 10% and the generation of 4, 1, and 17 ng/10(6) cells of immunoreactive LTC4, LTB4, and PGD2, respectively; the net percent release of beta-hexosaminidase and PGD2 generation were significantly greater than those obtained from BMMC. The Fc epsilon R-mediated net percent release of beta-hexosaminidase from purified SMC was 34%, with PGD2 being the predominant metabolite of arachidonic acid. That the predominant lipid mediator generated with activation by either Fc gamma R or Fc epsilon R is LTC4 for cocultured mast cells and PGD2 for SMC suggests that the mast cell phenotype rather than the receptor class being bridged determines the lipid mediator profile. The responsiveness to Fc gamma R bridging elicited by coculture of BMMC with fibroblasts in vitro and present in SMC derived in vivo relative to BMMC may relate to the previously measured increases in receptor number per cell, but may also involve the acquisition of an enhanced signal transduction capability, possibly through the increased expression of Fc gamma RIII.

Antigens, Differentiation↗
PubMed1992

Negative and positive cis-acting elements in the promoter of the mouse gene that encodes the serine/glycine-rich peptide core of secretory granule proteoglycans.

The gene that encodes a proteoglycan peptide core rich in serine and glycine (SG-PG) is selectively expressed by hematopoietic cells that store in their cytoplasmic granules negatively charged proteoglycans bound ionically to numerous positively charged proteins. With deletion analysis, a negative transcription regulatory element was located between residues -250 and -190 of the 5'-flanking region of the mouse SG-PG gene, and a positive regulatory element was located between residues -118 and -81. The negative regulatory element was dominantly active in fibroblasts that do not express the SG-PG gene whereas the positive regulatory element was dominantly active in hematopoietic cells that do express the SG-PG gene. Site-directed mutagenesis was used to demonstrate that the proximal element within the gene's atypical promoter resided between residues -40 and -20. As assessed by gel mobility shift analyses, the nuclei of rat basophilic leukemia-1 cells and rat-1 fibroblasts contain a number of trans-acting factors that interact with the positive and negative cis-acting regulatory elements of the SG-PG gene. Furthermore, some of these trans-acting factors appear to be different for the two cell types. These studies on cell types that do and do not express the SG-PG gene indicate that transcription of this proteoglycan peptide core gene is regulated constitutively by both positive and negative cis-acting elements located 5' of an atypical promoter.

3T3 Cells↗
PubMed1992

Continuous release of secretory granule proteoglycans from a cell strain derived from the bone marrow of a patient with diffuse cutaneous mastocytosis.

A human cell strain (designated HBM-M) that was derived from the bone marrow of a child with diffuse cutaneous mastocytosis was previously found to possess features that suggested it belonged in the mast cell/monocyte lineage. HBM-M cells synthesized approximately 150-Kd Pronase-resistant proteoglycans that were recognized by an antihuman secretory granule proteoglycan peptide core antibody. These cells also contained in relatively high abundance the same sized mRNA transcript that encodes the peptide core of proteoglycans that are normally localized to secretory granules of hematopoietic cells. However, unlike most other hematopoietic cells, HBM-M cells continuously released their newly synthesized 35S-labeled proteoglycans rather than retaining them in an intracellular storage compartment. Chondroitinase ABC, nitrous acid, and heparinase degraded approximately 76%, 17%, and 7%, respectively, of the HBM-M cell-derived 35S-labeled proteoglycans. As assessed by high performance liquid chromatography, 91% of the unsaturated 35S-labeled disaccharides generated by treatment with chondroitinase ABC were delta Di-4S. The remaining chondroitin sulfate 35S-labeled disaccharides appeared to be primarily a complex mixture of disulfated disaccharides. The 35S-labeled glycosaminoglycans that were not degraded by chondroitinase ABC migrated in two-dimensional cellulose acetate electrophoresis as if they were heparan sulfate or under-sulfated heparin. Thus, although the HBM-M cell-derived proteoglycans had some of the features of proteoglycans produced by normal human mast cells, the heparin-like and chondroitin sulfate glycosaminoglycans bound to the HBM-M cell proteoglycans were considerably less sulfated. Because the only human cell types that have so far been shown to synthesize proteoglycans that have heparin-like glycosaminoglycans bound to a protease-resistant peptide core are mast cells and basophilic leukocytes from patients with myelogenous leukemia, it is possible that the HBM-M cell is a mast cell progenitor cell.

Bone Marrow↗
PubMed1992

Acute and chronic suppression of leukotriene B4 synthesis ex vivo in neutrophils from patients with rheumatoid arthritis beginning treatment with methotrexate.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the cumulative effects of oral methotrexate (MTX) therapy (after 6-8 weeks) with the acute effects (24 hours after a dose) on arachidonic acid metabolism by the 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) pathway in neutrophils from patients with active rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who were beginning therapy with MTX. METHODS: Neutrophils and monocytes were isolated from whole blood from 7 patients with RA, immediately before and 24 hours after their first weekly dose of 7.5 mg of MTX, and again after their dose at 6-8 weeks. RESULTS: Total immunoreactive leukotriene B4 (LTB4) formation in neutrophils activated ex vivo with calcium ionophore A23187 was significantly suppressed (by 33%) before the 6-8-week dose, compared with the level before the first dose (mean +/- SEM 8.29 +/- 1.24 ng/10(6) cells at predose 6-8 weeks versus 12.29 +/- 2.13 ng/10(6) cells at predose 1; P = 0.03). Reductions were also observed after the first dose (27%; P = 0.07) and after the 6-8-week dose (43%; P = 0.05) compared with the respective predose levels. MTX treatment produced significant reductions in the total generation of 5-LO pathway products (5-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid + 6-trans-LTB4 + LTB4 + omega-oxidation products of LTB4) by calcium ionophore-activated neutrophils, as quantitated by integrated optical density after resolution on reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. Decreases were observed after the first dose (26%; P = 0.025), immediately before the 6-8-week dose (23%; P = 0.05), and after the 6-8-week dose (47%; P = 0.0033) compared with levels before the first dose, and after the 6-8-week dose compared with the level before it (32%; P = 0.04). The generation of LTB4 by calcium ionophore-activated monocytes was not significantly affected by MTX therapy. CONCLUSION: The significant decreases in the formation of omega-oxidation products of LTB4 and in the total generation of neutrophil 5-LO pathway products in the absence of a significant change in the release of 3H-arachidonic acid or the generation of platelet-activating factor suggest that the activity of the 5-LO enzyme in neutrophils is inhibited. We conclude that weekly oral MTX therapy in patients with active RA inhibits neutrophil 5-LO pathway product generation in a pattern consistent with inhibition of the activity of the 5-LO enzyme; an effect is observed after the first dose. The inhibition of 5-LO is cell-selective and cumulative, with a superimposed incremental inhibition observed after the weekly MTX dose.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Cloning and characterization of the novel gene for mast cell carboxypeptidase A.

No gene for a hematopoietic cell carboxypeptidase has previously been characterized. Mast cell carboxypeptidase A (MC-CPA) is a prominent secretory granule marker of mast cell differentiation and phenotype. The 32-kb human MC-CPA gene was isolated, localized to chromosome 3, and found to contain 11 exons. No significant homology was found between the 5' flanking region of the MC-CPA gene and those of three rat pancreatic carboxypeptidase genes (carboxypeptidase A1 and A2, and carboxypeptidase B [CPB]). In contrast, the intron/exon organization of the MC-CPA gene was conserved, most closely resembling the CPB gene. MC-CPA is unique among carboxypeptidases in having a CPA-like substrate-binding pocket and enzymatic activity despite overall protein and gene structures more similar to CPB. Evolutionary tree analysis of the carboxypeptidase gene family showed that, before the mammalian species radiation, a common MC-CPA/CPB ancestor diverged by gene duplication from the lineage leading to CPA, and then underwent another gene duplication to form separate but similar gene structures for MC-CPA and CPB. MC-CPA mRNA was prominent in dispersed lung cells enriched for mast cells but was undetectable in other nontransformed populations of several lineages, demonstrating that transcription of MC-CPA, a novel carboxypeptidase gene, provides a specific molecular marker for mast cells among normal hematopoietic cell populations.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1992

Mast-cell phenotype in indolent forms of mastocytosis. Ultrastructural features, fluorescence detection of avidin binding, and immunofluorescent determination of chymase, tryptase, and carboxypeptidase.

The factor(s) that causes excessive mast cell (MC) proliferation in indolent forms of mastocytosis is not known, nor is it known whether that proliferation is a regulated clonal expansion or merely a non-neoplastic hyperplasia. Human MCs display phenotypes that depend on the microenvironment. Thus, if the phenotype of MCs in mastocytosis lesions is determined to be abnormal for that tissue site (and therefore the MCs are refractory to microenvironmental signals) then a clonal process would be suggested. The authors determined the phenotypes of MCs from the lesional skin of 17 patients with indolent mastocytosis and the bone marrows of 9 patients. They compared them with the phenotypes of MCs from the lesional skin of 8 patients with various dermatitides, the skin of 2 patients with idiopathic anaphylaxis, and the breast skin of 15 control patients. MCs from all the skin specimens showed the characteristic skin MC phenotype, with predominantly scroll-poor granules by ultrastructure and containing tryptase and chymase by immunofluorescence detection (the MCTC immunophenotype). The skin MCs of each patient bound avidin and contained carboxypeptidase by immunofluorescence detection. MCs from the bone marrow of patients with indolent mastocytosis, the source of progenitors, also showed the scroll-poor and MCTC phenotypes. These findings do not support an unregulated clonal expansion in indolent forms of mastocytosis. They are consistent with a non-neoplastic hyperplasia or possibly a clonal process in which MCs remain responsive to microenvironmental regulation.

Avidin↗
PubMed1991

GATA-binding transcription factors in mast cells regulate the promoter of the mast cell carboxypeptidase A gene.

The transcription factors GATA-1, GATA-2, and GATA-3 were found to be expressed in several mouse and rat mast cell lines that contain mast cell carboxypeptidase A (MC-CPA) and other proteases in their cytoplasmic granules. GATA-1 mRNA was not detected in P815 cells, an immature mouse mastocytoma-derived cell line that lacks electron-dense granules and has low levels of secretory granule proteases. Because the 5'-flanking regions of the mouse and human MC-CPA genes contained a conserved GATA-binding motif 51 base pairs upstream of their translation initiation sites, the ability of GATA-binding proteins to regulate the promoter activity of the MC-CPA gene was examined in rat basophilic leukemia cells, mouse P815 cells, and transfected mouse P815 cells that expressed GATA-1. In all three mast cell lines, the promoter activity of the MC-CPA gene depended on the GATA binding site. GATA-1, GATA-2, and GATA-3 are thus the first DNA-binding proteins identified in mast cells which regulate the promoter activity of a gene that encodes a secretory granule protease.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Molecular cloning of the mouse mast cell protease-5 gene. A novel secretory granule protease expressed early in the differentiation of serosal mast cells.

cDNAs were isolated that encode mouse mast cell protease-5 (MMCP-5), an approximately 30,000 Mr serine protease stored in the secretory granules of serosal mast cells (SMC) and Kirsten sarcoma virus-immortalized mast cells. Based on the deduced amino acid sequences of these cDNAs, MMCP-5 is synthesized as a 247-amino acid preproenzyme composed of a novel 19-residue hydrophobic signal peptide, a Gly-Glu activation peptide not present in other mast cell chymases, and a 226-amino acid protein that represents the mature enzyme. MMCP-5 possesses a unique Asn residue in the substrate binding cleft at residue 176 and is highly basically charged. The MMCP-5 gene was isolated, sequenced, and found to belong to a distinct subset of chymase genes. Allelic variations of the MMCP-5 gene were also detected. MMCP-5 is expressed in bone marrow-derived mast cells (BMMC), Kirsten sarcoma virus-immortalized mast cells, and SMC, but not in gastrointestinal mucosal mast cells of helminth-infected mice. The abundant levels of MMCP-5 mRNA in immature BMMC indicate that this chymase is expressed relatively early during the differentiation of mast cells. MMCP-5 is the first chymase to be molecularly cloned from progenitor mast cells and is also the first chymase shown to be expressed preferentially in the SMC subclass.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Molecular cloning of gp49, a cell-surface antigen that is preferentially expressed by mouse mast cell progenitors and is a new member of the immunoglobulin superfamily.

gp49 is a Mr 49,000 glycoprotein expressed on the surface of mouse bone marrow-derived mast cells, which are progenitors for the major in vivo mast cell subclasses, typified by intestinal mucosal mast cells and serosal mast cells. The amino-terminal amino acid sequence of gp49 was determined after isolation of the solubilized membrane protein by affinity chromatography with the B23.1 anti-gp49 monoclonal antibody. Redundant oligonucleotides were used to isolate a full-length 1.3-kilobase cDNA from a mouse mast cell library. The predicted amino acid sequence contains a signal peptide of 23 residues, an extracellular domain of 215 residues with three potential sites of N-linked glycosylation, a transmembrane domain of 23 residues, and a cytoplasmic tail of 42 residues. Hybridization of the gp49 cDNA was limited to mRNA extracted from those cell types that also bound the B23.1 monoclonal antibody as assessed by cytofluorographic analyses. The predicted extracellular domain of gp49 contains two regions of 48 and 51 amino acids, each flanked by cysteine residues. Both regions meet criteria for being C2-type domains of the immunoglobulin superfamily based upon the alignment of consensus amino acids and their predicted secondary structure organization. Thus, gp49, a membrane glycoprotein preferentially expressed by the progenitor mast cell population, is a new member of the immunoglobulin superfamily.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Identification of aminopeptidase activity in the secretory granules of mouse mast cells.

Sonicates of mouse bone marrow-derived mast cells (BMMC) differentiated in vitro and of mouse serosal mast cells differentiated in vivo contained small but approximately equal amounts of aminopeptidase activity, as determined by cleavage of leucine-beta-naphthylamide and resolution of the reaction products by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography. Aminopeptidase activity was exocytosed from antigen-activated, IgE-sensitized BMMC in proportion to the secretory granule enzyme beta-hexosaminidase, thereby localizing approximately 60% of the total cell-associated aminopeptidase activity to the secretory granules of the mast cells. A prominent secretory granule location for aminopeptidase was confirmed by activity measurement in subcellular fractions of disrupted BMMC. The secretory granule aminopeptidase had a pH optimum of 6.0-8.0 and a Km of 0.36 +/- 0.06 mM (mean +/- SD; n = 3) for leucine-beta-naphthylamide. When various amino acid beta-naphthylamides were used as substrates, the preference of the secretory granule enzyme was Ala greater than Leu greater than Phe much greater than Arg much greater than Asp = Tyr. Most of the aminopeptidase activity that was exocytosed from calcium ionophore-activated BMMC was bound to 35S-labeled proteoglycans in complexes of greater than 1 x 10(7) kDa as defined by exclusion during Sepharose CL-2B gel-filtration chromatography. We postulate that the amino-peptidase in the mast cell protease/proteoglycan complexes allows the removal of N-terminal amino acids from peptides that are generated by the action of mast cell endopeptidases.

Aminopeptidases↗