M W Aynardi | PubMed Health

PubMed1987

Protease B of Saccharomyces cerevisiae: isolation and regulation of the PRB1 structural gene.

We have isolated the structural gene, PRB1, for the vacuolar protease B of Saccharomyces cerevisiae from a genomic library by complementation of the prb1-1122 mutation. Deletion analysis localized the complementing activity to a 3.2-kilobase pair XhoI-HindIII restriction enzyme fragment. The fragment was used to identify a 2.3-kilobase mRNA. S1 endonuclease mapping indicated that the mRNA and the gene were colinear. No introns were detected. The mRNA is of sufficient size to encode a protein of about 69,000 molecular weight, a number much larger than either the mature enzyme (congruent to 30,000 protein molecular weight) or the sole reported precursor (congruent to 39,000 protein molecular weight). These results suggest that proteolytic processing steps beyond that thought to be catalyzed by protease A may be required to convert the initial glycosylated translation product into mature protease B. The PRB1 mRNA is made in substantial amounts only when the cells have exhausted the glucose supply and enter the diauxic plateau. There is an extended time lag between PRB1 transcription and expression of protease B activity. A deletion that removes about 83% of the coding region was constructed as a diploid heterozygote. Spores bearing the deletion germinate, grow at normal rates into colonies, and have no obvious phenotype beyond protease B deficiency.

Endopeptidases↗

PubMed1984

Human epithelial cell intermediate filaments: isolation, purification, and characterization.

Intermediate filaments (IF) isolated from human epithelial cells (HeLa) can be disassembled in 8 M urea and reassembled in phosphate-buffered solutions containing greater than 0.1 mg/ml IF protein. Eight proteins were associated with HeLa IF after several disassembly-reassembly cycles as determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate gel electrophoresis (SDS PAGE). A rabbit antiserum directed against HeLa IF contained antibodies to most of these proteins. The immunofluorescence pattern that was seen in HeLa cells with this antiserum is complex. It consisted of a juxtanuclear accumulation of IF protein and a weblike array of cytoplasmic fibers extending to the cell border. Following preadsorption with individual HeLa IF proteins, the immunofluorescence pattern in HeLa cells was altered to suggest the presence of at least two distinct IF networks. The amino acid composition and alpha-helix content (approximately 38%) of HeLa IF proteins was similar to the values obtained for other IF proteins. One-dimensional peptide maps show extensive homology between the major HeLa IF protein of 55,000-mol-wt and a similar 55,000-mol-wt protein obtained from hamster fibroblasts (BHK-21). HeLa 55,000-mol-wt homopolymer IF assembled under conditions similar to those required for BHK-21 55,000-mol-wt homopolymers. Several other proteins present in HeLa IF preparations may be keratin-like structural proteins. The results obtained in these studies indicate that the major HeLa IF protein is the same major IF structural protein found in fibroblasts. Ultrastructural studies of HeLa cells revealed two distinct IF organizational stages including bundles and loose arrays. In addition, in vitro reconstituted HeLa IF also exhibited these two organizational states.

Amino Acids↗