Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: EC:3.4.21.37 (neutrophil elastase)
 4,078 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Airway inflammation is often associated with the infiltration of activated neutrophils and subsequent protease release. Although aiding in the digestion and phagocytosis of foreign proteins and microorganisms, neutrophil proteases can indiscriminately damage healthy lung tissue. In the conducting airway, proteases, particularly neutrophil elastase, are counter-balanced by several antiproteases, including secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor (SLPI). SLPI can be produced locally by a number of cells including the airway epithelial cell. To examine the effects of neutrophil granule components on SLPI transcript levels, airway epithelial cells were treated (up to 96 h) with elastase, other proteases, or enzymes isolated from human sputum. We found that neutrophil elastase increased SLPI transcript levels in primary and transformed human airway epithelial cells in a time- and dose-dependent manner. Other neutrophil products, such as cathepsin G, myeloperoxidase, and lysozyme, had little or no effect on SLPI transcript levels. However, two nonneutrophil proteases, trypsin and pancreatic elastase, also increased SLPI transcript levels at higher doses than that required of neutrophil elastase. Two inflammatory cytokines, tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interleukin-8, produced little or no effect on SLPI transcript levels. This study demonstrates one way in which SLPI is regulated, via a protease that it inhibits, neutrophil elastase.
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PMID:Neutrophil elastase increases secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor transcript levels in airway epithelial cells. 810 97

Alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency is a common, underrecognized disorder manifested by emphysema in adults and liver disease in children. Early diagnosis and subsequent prevention of lung inflammation due to cigarette smoking, infection, and airborne irritants form the most rational approach to slow the progression of the lung destruction associated with alpha 1AT deficiency. Currently, liver transplantation is the only therapy available to patients with severe liver disease due to alpha 1AT deficiency. Less commonly, many inflammatory and/or immune-mediated diseases have been described in association with alpha 1AT deficiency. These observations are probably related to the role that alpha 1AT plays in the immune response both as a target for modulation by cytokines and as a modulator of the immune response. At present, therapy for the emphysema associated with alpha 1AT is limited to weekly augmentation therapy with recombinant alpha 1AT. Future therapeutic modalities include aerosol alpha 1AT, secretory leukocyte proteinase inhibitor, low molecular weight inhibitors of neutrophil elastase, and gene transfer via viral vector.
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PMID:Clinical features and molecular characteristics of alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency. 810

Whole-blood chemiluminescence and levels of leukocyte proteases and plasma protease inhibitors were studied in 43 patients with acute, generalized peritonitis. An almost three-fold increase in whole-blood chemiluminescence was found in acute peritonitis, which may indicate activation or "priming" of the leukocytes by blood-borne factors. High levels of leukocyte elastase and neutrophil proteinase 4(3) were found in plasma and peritoneal exudate. Patients with sepsis had higher plasma levels of both proteases than other patients. Large variations in the plasma levels among patients decreased their sensitivity as markers of infectious complications during the postoperative period. The plasma levels of the protease inhibitors followed three different patterns of reaction. The acute phase proteins alpha 1-proteinase inhibitor and C1-inactivator, increased during the first week of disease, to normalise later in its course. alpha 2-macroglobulin, antithrombin III and alpha 2-antiplasmin were all decreased from onset and normalised later in the course, while secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor showed a slow decrease throughout the course of disease. In peritonitis exudate, the levels of the main protease inhibitors, alpha 1-Proteinase Inhibitor and alpha 2-Macroglobulin, were decreased, probably due to complexation and subsequent elimination, as a part of the defense against liberated leukocyte proteases. The immunoreactive and especially functional levels of the protease inhibitors alpha 2-Antiplasmin, Antithrombin III and C1-Inactivator were also decreased in the exudate, indicating an increased turn-over of these proteins through activation of the cascade systems and/or break-down by leukocyte proteases. In contrast to the other inhibitors, secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor showed higher levels in exudate than in plasma, and unexpectedly high exudate/plasma-quotients were seen in cases with colonic perforations. Degradation of complement factor 3 (C3) and decreased "opsonic capacity" were found in exudate. The "opsonic capacity" could be correlated to the levels of leukocyte proteases in the exudate, which indicates that degradation of complement factor 3 may have been at least partly due to the action of leukocyte proteases. Further depletion of complement factors in exudates of long-standing peritonitis or abscesses may create a vicious circle of deficient opsonisation and clearance of bacteria, as earlier reported for chronic pleural exudates.
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PMID:Protease-antiprotease levels and whole-blood chemiluminescence in acute peritonitis. 822 20

The regulation of proteinases secreted by neutrophils is very important for the prevention of tissue injury. We recently described the isolation of elafin from bronchial secretions, a new elastase-specific inhibitor that is also found in the skin of patients with psoriasis. In this study, we investigated the secretion of elafin and mucus proteinase inhibitor (MPI), another inhibitor showing sequence similarity with elafin, in two lung carcinoma cell lines, NCI-H322 and A549, which have features of Clara cells and type II alveolar cells, respectively. The results presented show that the two inhibitors are produced when the cells are cultured either in serum-free or in serum-containing media. MPI was detected immunologically as a unique molecule of M(r) 14 kD, in accordance with previous studies. Conversely, one or two elafin-immunoreactive species were detected depending on the cell line: a 12- to 14-kD species was observed in the A549 cell line, regardless of the culture conditions, whereas in the NCI-H322 cell line we detected a 6-kD species in serum-containing (10% fetal calf serum) conditions and a 12- to 14-kD species in serum-free conditions. The 12- to 14-kD molecule probably represents an active precursor of elafin. Whether the cleavage of the 12- to 14-kD precursor giving rise to the elafin molecule is of any physiologic significance is not known. In showing for the first time that MPI and elafin (and its precursor) are secreted by the A549 cell line, this report implicates the type II alveolar cell in the defense of the peripheral lung against the neutrophil elastase secreted during inflammation.
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PMID:Secretion of mucus proteinase inhibitor and elafin by Clara cell and type II pneumocyte cell lines. 842 5

The inhibition of human chymase, a chymotrypsin-like proteinase stored in mast cell granules, by secretory leukocyte proteinase inhibitor (SLPI) is investigated in this study. SLPI is a serine proteinase inhibitor present in human mucus secretions and tissues. It binds heparin, a highly sulfated glycosaminoglycan also found in mast cell secretary granules, and the interaction increases its effectiveness as an inhibitor of neutrophil elastase. Analysis of the chymase-SL interaction by equilibrium and kinetic methods indicates that the inhibition of chymase results from the reversible formation of a stable 1:1 enzyme-inhibitor complex. The dissociation equilibrium constant (determined in reactions containing 0.18 M or 1.0M NaCl (pH 8.0, 25 degrees C) was 5 X 10(-8) and 2 x 10(-8) M, respectively. Addition of heparin to the low-salt reaction decreased the Ki approximately 10-fold to a value of 3 x 10(-9) M, making SLPI a more effective inhibitor of human chymase. The decrease was due primarily to an approximately 10-fold increase in the association rate constant (kass) from 2 X 10(4) to 3 X 10(5) M-1 s-1. The magnitudes of the rate and dissociation equilibrium constants indicate that SLPI has the potential to be a good chymase inhibitor in vivo, especially if chymase and heparin are released from mast cell granules simultaneously. The enhanced interaction in the presence of heparin supports the importance of this glycosaminoglycan to the inhibitory function of SLPI.
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PMID:Inhibition of human mast cell chymase by secretory leukocyte proteinase inhibitor: enhancement of the interaction by heparin. 861 99

Proteinase inhibitors confine the activity of proteolytic enzymes of inflammatory cells, but fail to protect substrates in the immediate pericellular zone. We report quantitative imaging that demonstrates discrete, evanescent, quantized proteolytic events attributable to the release of single azurophil granules from neutrophils. The images provide information about the dynamics of this nonequilibrium system, which is characterized by overwhelmingly high local concentrations of enzymes that rapidly dissipate. With physiologic concentrations of extracellular human leukocyte elastase inhibitors (32.8 microM), the radii of the unit proteolytic events are 1.32 microm (approximately 8 times the radius of the azurophil granule) and are inversely and nonlinearly related to the concentration of proteinase inhibitor that is present in the bathing medium. We have obtained identical results with alpha1-antitrypsin, alpha2m, recombinant secretory leukocyte proteinase inhibitor, and ICI 200,355, and we have found that phagocyte-derived oxidants are not required for the genesis of this catalytic activity. Our results reveal that the enzyme:inhibitor ratio is the primary delimiter of quantized proteolysis in the local microenvironment.
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PMID:Quantum proteolysis resulting from release of single granules by human neutrophils: a novel, nonoxidative mechanism of extracellular proteolytic activity. 880 66

We report the production of human mucus proteinase inhibitor (MPI) by the filamentous fungus Aspergillus niger to test the ability of this host organism to secrete low molecular weight, highly disulfide-bonded proteins in biologically active conformation. Fungal transformants have been obtained with an expression cassette consisting of a chimeric gene founded on a mpi cDNA, encoding mature MPI, fused in frame to sequences encoding A. niger glucoamylase (glaA), separated by a KEX2-like processing sequence. Expression of the glucoamylase fusion gene in these transformants resulted in secretion of MPI into the growth medium with yields up to 3 mg 1-1. N-terminal sequence analysis of the purified inhibitor confirmed that the glucoamylase-MPI fusion protein was correctly processed to mature MPI by a KEX2-type endopeptidase present in A. niger. Furthermore, recombinant MPI retains full inhibitory activity against chymotrypsin and leukocyte elastase indicating that the protein was folded properly.
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PMID:Secretion of active human mucus proteinase inhibitor by Aspergillus niger after KEX2-like processing of a glucoamylase-inhibitor fusion protein. 908 9

Infection of monocytes with human immunodeficiency virus type 1(Ba-L) (HIV-1(Ba-L)) is significantly inhibited by treatment with the serine protease inhibitor, secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor (SLPI). SLPI does not appear to act on virus directly, but rather the inhibitory activity is most likely due to interaction with the host cell. The current study was initiated to investigate how SLPI interacts with monocytes to inhibit infection. SLPI was found to bind to monocytes with high affinity to a single class of receptor sites (approximately 7,000 receptors per monocyte, K(D) = 3.6 nmol/L). The putative SLPI receptor was identified as a surface protein with a molecular weight of 55 +/- 5 kD. A well-characterized function of SLPI is inhibition of neutrophil elastase and cathepsin G. However, two SLPI mutants (or muteins) that contain single amino acid substitutions and exhibit greatly reduced protease inhibitory activity still bound to monocytes and retained anti-HIV-1 activity. SLPI consists of two domains, of which the C-terminal domain contains the protease inhibiting region. However, when tested independently, neither domain had potent anti-HIV-1 activity. SLPI binding neither prevented virus binding to monocytes nor attenuated the infectivity of any virus progeny that escaped inhibition by SLPI. A polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based assay for newly generated viral DNA demonstrated that SLPI blocks at or before viral DNA synthesis. Therefore, it most likely inhibits a step of viral infection that occurs after virus binding but before reverse transcription. Taken together, the unique antiviral activity of SLPI, which may be independent of its previously characterized antiprotease activity, appears to reside in disruption of the viral infection process soon after virus binding.
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PMID:Inhibition of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 infectivity by secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor occurs prior to viral reverse transcription. 924 46

During airway inflammation, proteinases such as human leukocyte elastase are actively secreted. Secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor is a major serine proteinase inhibitor, secreted by bronchial, bronchiolar and lung epithelial cells. We recently identified secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor in human nasal epithelium, exclusively in remodelled areas of the surface epithelium. We now investigated the influence of remodelling and inflammation of the nasal tissue on the in vitro capacity of these cells to respond to human leukocyte elastase. Primary cultures of surface epithelial cells were established from various nasal polyp samples. At confluency, cell cultures were exposed to different human leukocyte elastase concentrations. The secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor immunocytolocalisation, expression and secretion were then investigated. Immunocytochemistry, showed a human leukocyte elastase dose-dependent increase of secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor containing cells and a basal extracellular localization of secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor after incubation with 100 microg/ml human leukocyte elastase. The relative amount of secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor mRNA transcripts increased with respect to the human leukocyte elastase concentration. Nevertheless, the potential stimulation of secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor secretion by human leukocyte elastase was lower in the more remodelled and inflamed tissue. Our results suggest that the contribution of the surface epithelial cells of poorly remodelled tissues to the protection against the deleterious effect of neutrophil proteinases is severely decreased in highly remodelled and inflamed tissues.
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PMID:The elastase-induced expression of secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor is decreased in remodelled airway epithelium. 938 32

The major physiological role of human secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor (SLPI), a low molecular weight inhibitor present in mucus, is the rapid formation of a tight-binding inhibitory complex with neutrophil elastase. It is also the most effective known inhibitor of human mast cell chymase. The inhibitory efficacy of recombinant SLPI towards three other mast cell chymases was therefore investigated. Rat mast cell proteinases-1 and -2 (rMCP-1 and -2, respectively) and sheep mast cell proteinase-1 (sMCP-1), a chymase with additional tryptase-like properties, were treated with the inhibitor. SLPI inhibited rMCP-1 very efficiently in the absence of heparin, with a low dissociation constant, Ki = 3 x 10(-10) M and high second order association constant, kass = 8.0 x 10(6) M(-1) s(-1), and inhibition was enhanced when heparin was present. rMCP-2 was not inhibited by SLPI in the presence or absence of heparin, and did not degrade SLPI on prolonged incubation. SLPI inhibited sMCP-1 very poorly in the absence of heparin (Ki = 9 X 10(-6) M). However, in the presence of heparin, the Ki for inhibition of sMCP-1 by SLPI was reduced to the nanomolar range. sMCP-1 was observed to cleave SLPI with chymase-like specificity at Leu72-Met73 on prolonged incubation in the absence of heparin, but increasing concentrations of heparin reduced the extent of cleavage.
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PMID:Differential inhibition of mast cell chymases by secretory leukocyte protease inhibitor. 946 29


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