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Query: EC:3.4.25.1 (proteasome)
28,817 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

The initial processing of antigens leading to major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I antigenic peptides is carried out by the proteasome. However, how the final epitopes are generated and protected from degradation by cytosolic peptidases remains unknown. Coincidentally, peptides associated with the MHC class I molecules range from 8 to 13 amino acid residues, similarly to the optimum substrate size required for the cytosolic thimet oligopeptidase. Here we have investigated the putative intracellular function of thimet oligopeptidase related to antigen presentation. Using a well-characterized antigen-presenting cell system, we were able to demonstrate either inhibition or stimulation of CD8 T cell proliferation and cytotoxicity, manipulating intracellular thimet oligopeptidase levels with its specific inhibitor cFP-Ala-Ala-Tyr-pAb or loading the enzyme itself into the antigen-presenting cells. Our results suggest that thimet oligopeptidase should take an important function in the pathway of antigen presentation via MHC class I through a mechanism yet unknown.
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PMID:Thimet oligopeptidase (EC 3.4.24.15), a novel protein on the route of MHC class I antigen presentation. 1004 55

In this study we investigated the fate of a class of proteasome-generated oligopeptides, exposing them to the crude cytosol of macrophages or to the purified recombinant thimet oligopeptidase. Among the proteasome products of known sequences are MHC class I epitopes, 13 of which were randomly chosen to be used as putative substrates. Surprisingly, our results clearly showed that the majority of the peptides were poorly or not degraded, either by the purified enzyme or by the crude macrophage cytosol. The peptides, which were resistant to hydrolysis, displayed high affinity for the thimet oligopeptidase as competitive inhibitors. Regardless of the fact that our data do not allow prediction of whether or not a specific peptide would be degraded, it seems very likely that the structural features, which rule out the stability of the MHC class I peptides in the cytosol, may have implications in an optimized repertoire selection for antigen presentation.
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PMID:Thimet oligopeptidase and the stability of MHC class I epitopes in macrophage cytosol. 1004 56

The class I major histocompatibility complex (MHC class I) presents 8-10 residue peptides to cytotoxic T lymphocytes. Most of these antigenic peptides are generated during protein degradation in the cytoplasm and are then transported into the endoplasmic reticulum by the transporter associated with antigen processing (TAP). Several lines of evidence have indicated that the proteasome is the major proteolytic activity responsible for generation of antigenic peptides--probably most conclusive has been the finding that specific inhibitors of the proteasome block antigen presentation. However, other proteases (e.g. the signal peptidase) may also generate some epitopes, particularly those on certain MHC class I alleles. The proteasome is responsible for generating the precise C termini of many presented peptides, and appears to be the only activity in cells that can make this cleavage. In contrast, aminopeptidases in the cytoplasm and endoplasmic reticulum can trim the N terminus of extended peptides to their proper size. Interestingly, the cellular content of proteases involved in the production and destruction of antigenic peptides is modified by interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) treatment of cells. IFN-gamma induces the expression of three new proteasome beta subunits that are preferentially incorporated into new proteasomes and alter their pattern of peptidase activities. These changes are likely to enhance the yield of peptides with C termini appropriate for MHC binding and have been shown to enhance the presentation of at least some antigens. IFN-gamma also upregulates leucine aminopeptidase, which should promote the removal of N-terminal flanking residues of antigenic peptides. Also, this cytokine downregulates the expression of a metallo-proteinase, thimet oligopeptidase, that actively destroys many antigenic peptides. Thus, IFN-gamma appears to increase the supply of peptides by stimulating their generation and decreasing their destruction. The specificity and content of these various proteases should determine the amount of peptides available for antigen presentation. Also, the efficiency with which a peptide is presented is determined by the protein's half life (e.g. its ubiquitination rate) and the sequences flanking antigenic peptides, which influence the rates of proteolytic cleavage and destruction.
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PMID:Proteolysis and class I major histocompatibility complex antigen presentation. 1063 36

The fate of the proteasome-generated peptides depends upon the cytosolic peptidases whose activities ought to be regulated. One of the most important oligopeptide-degrading and -binding proteins in the cytosol is the thimet oligopeptidase (EC 3.4.24.15), ubiquitously found in mammalian tissues. To date, there is no indication whether thimet oligopeptidase activities are physiologically regulated. Here, we present evidences suggesting that the concentration of unbound ATP in the cytosol regulates the thimet oligopeptidase activities both, in vitro and ex vivo. To perform these studies two oligopeptides were used: a quenched fluorescent peptide, which is susceptible to thimet oligopeptidase degradation, and the ovalbumin257-264 (MHC class I ovalbumin epitope), which displays high affinity to the thimet oligopeptidase without being degraded. We also showed that the thimet oligopeptidase undergoes autophosphorylation by ATP, a modification that does not affect the peptidase activity. The autophosphorylation is abolished in the presence of the thimet oligopeptidase substrates, as well as by the effect of a site directed inhibitor of this enzyme, and by the substitution of Glu474 for Asp at the metallo-peptidase motif. Altogether, the results presented here suggest that Zn2+ at the active center of the thimet oligopeptidase is the target for the ATP binding, leading to the inhibition of the enzyme activity, and inducing autophosphorylation. These effects, which depend upon the concentration of the unbound ATP, may help to explain the fate of the proteasomal-generated oligopeptides in the cytosol.
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PMID:Free ATP inhibits thimet oligopeptidase (EC 3.4.24.15) activity, induces autophosphorylation in vitro, and controls oligopeptide degradation in macrophage. 1117 54

The proteasome is now recognized to be implicated in the generation of the vast majority of MHC class I ligands. Moreover, it is probably the only cytosolic protease generating their carboxyterminals. However, solid evidence documents a role of additional and only partly identified proteases in MHC class I antigen processing. Cytosolic tripeptidyl peptidase (TTP II) may be able to carry out some functions normally ascribed to the proteasome, including that of generating antigenic peptides. Several cytosolic enzymes, including bleomycin hydrolase (BH) and puromycin-sensitive aminopeptidase (PSA), but especially the IFNgamma-inducible leucyl aminopeptidase (LAP), can trim the aminoterminal ends of class I ligands. The vast majority of cytosolic peptides is degraded, a process likely to limit antigen presentation, in which thimet oligopeptidase (TOP) may play an important role. Proteolytic activity in the secretory pathway, though much more limited than in the cytosol, also contributes to class I antigen presentation. Signal peptide fragments and peptides at the carboxyterminal end of various proteins targeted to the endoplasmic reticulum can be highly efficient TAP-independent class I ligands. However, an as yet unidentified luminal trimming aminopeptidase may eventually turn out to play the most important role for class I ligand generation in the secretory pathway. Defining the extent of the involvement of cytosolic and luminal peptidases in class I antigen processing will be a challenging task for the future.
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PMID:Beyond the proteasome: trimming, degradation and generation of MHC class I ligands by auxiliary proteases. 1220 51

The degradation of cellular proteins by proteasomes generates peptides 2-24 residues long, which are hydrolyzed rapidly to amino acids. To define the final steps in this pathway and the responsible peptidases, we fractionated by size the peptides generated by proteasomes from beta-[14C]casein and studied in HeLa cell extracts the degradation of the 9-17 residue fraction and also of synthetic deca- and dodecapeptide libraries, because peptides of this size serve as precursors to MHC class I antigenic peptides. Their hydrolysis was followed by measuring the generation of smaller peptides or of new amino groups using fluorescamine. The 14C-labeled peptides released by 20 S proteasomes could not be degraded further by proteasomes. However, their degradation in the extracts and that of the peptide libraries was completely blocked by o-phenanthroline and thus required metallopeptidases. One such endopeptidase, thimet oligopeptidase (TOP), which was recently shown to degrade many antigenic precursors in the cytosol, was found to play a major role in degrading proteasome products. Inhibition or immunodepletion of TOP decreased their degradation and that of the peptide libraries by 30-50%. Pure TOP failed to degrade proteasome products 18-24 residues long but degraded the 9-17 residue fraction to peptides of 6-9 residues. When aminopeptidases in the cell extract were inhibited with bestatin, the 9-17 residue proteasome products were also converted to peptides of 6-9 residues, instead of smaller products. Accordingly, the cytosolic aminopeptidase, leucine aminopeptidase, could not degrade the 9-17 residue fraction but hydrolyzed the peptides generated by TOP to smaller products, recapitulating the process in cell extracts. Inactivation of both TOP and aminopeptidases blocked the degradation of proteasome products and peptide libraries nearly completely. Thus, degradation of most 9-17 residue proteasome products is initiated by endoproteolytic cleavages, primarily by TOP, and the resulting 6-9 residue fragments are further digested to amino acids by aminopeptidases.
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PMID:Pathway for degradation of peptides generated by proteasomes: a key role for thimet oligopeptidase and other metallopeptidases. 1532 61

Extralysosomal proteolysis by multicatalytic complexes such as the 26S proteasome produces large amounts of peptides in the cytosol, mitochondria and nuclei of eukaryotic cells, and there is increasing evidence that the resulting free intracellular peptides can modulate specific protein interactions. The demonstration that free peptides added to the intracellular milieu can regulate cellular functions mediated by protein interactions suggests new putative roles for these molecules in gene regulation, metabolism, cell signaling and protein targeting. Such interactions frequently involve specific consensus amino acid sequences that can be predicted based on similarities in domain composition. We have recently developed a new strategy for identifying novel natural peptides, the sequences of which correspond to fragments of intracellular proteins and contain putative post-translational modification sites. In this review, we examine the evidence that intracellular peptides released by proteasomes may be involved in regulating protein interactions. In particular, the role of endopeptidase 24.15 (thimet oligopeptidase; EC 3.4.24.15) is discussed in detail as this enzyme has been implicated in intracellular peptide metabolism in vivo in concert with the 26S proteasome.
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PMID:Intracellullar peptides as putative natural regulators of protein interactions. 1552 30

Protein degradation by the ubiquitin proteasome system releases large amounts of oligopeptides within cells. To investigate possible functions for these intracellularly generated oligopeptides, we fused them to a cationic transactivator peptide sequence using reversible disulfide bonds, introduced them into cells, and analyzed their effect on G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR) signal transduction. A mixture containing four of these peptides (20-80 microm) significantly inhibited the increase in the extracellular acidification response triggered by angiotensin II (ang II) in CHO-S cells transfected with the ang II type 1 receptor (AT1R-CHO-S). Subsequently, either alone or in a mixture, these peptides increased luciferase gene transcription in AT1R CHO-S cells stimulated with ang II and in HEK293 cells treated with isoproterenol. These peptides without transactivator failed to affect GPCR cellular responses. All four functional peptides were shown in vitro to competitively inhibit the degradation of a synthetic substrate by thimet oligopeptidase. Overexpression of thimet oligopeptidase in both CHO-S and HEK293 cells was sufficient to reduce luciferase activation triggered by a specific GPCR agonist. Moreover, using individual peptides as baits in affinity columns, several proteins involved in GPCR signaling were identified, including alpha-adaptin A and dynamin 1. These results suggest that before their complete degradation, intracellular peptides similar to those generated by proteasomes can actively affect cell signaling, probably representing additional bioactive molecules within cells.
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PMID:Intracellular peptides as natural regulators of cell signaling. 1861 18

Heavy metals are known to generate reactive oxygen species that lead to the oxidation and fragmentation of proteins, which become toxic when accumulated in the cell. In this study, we investigated the role of the proteasome during cadmium stress in the leaves of Arabidopsis thaliana plants. Using biochemical and proteomics approaches, we present the first evidence of an active proteasome pathway in plants. We identified and characterized the peptidases acting sequentially downstream from the proteasome in animal cells as follows: tripeptidyl-peptidase II, thimet oligopeptidase, and leucine aminopeptidase. We investigated the proteasome proteolytic pathway response in the leaves of 6-week-old A. thaliana plants grown hydroponically for 24, 48, and 144 h in the presence or absence of 50 mum cadmium. The gene expression and proteolytic activity of the proteasome and the different proteases of the pathway were found to be up-regulated in response to cadmium. In an in vitro assay, oxidized bovine serum albumin and lysozyme were more readily degraded in the presence of 20 S proteasome and tripeptidyl-peptidase II than their nonoxidized form, suggesting that oxidized proteins are preferentially degraded by the Arabidopsis 20 S proteasome pathway. These results show that, in response to cadmium, the 20 S proteasome proteolytic pathway is up-regulated at both RNA and activity levels in Arabidopsis leaves and may play a role in degrading oxidized proteins generated by the stress.
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PMID:Evidence for the Existence in Arabidopsis thaliana of the Proteasome Proteolytic Pathway: ACTIVATION IN RESPONSE TO CADMIUM. 1982 24

Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) recognize peptides presented by HLA class I molecules on the cell surface. The C terminus of these CTL epitopes is considered to be produced by the proteasome. Here we demonstrate that the cytosolic endopeptidases nardilysin and thimet oligopeptidase (TOP) complemented proteasome activity. Nardilysin and TOP were required, either together or alone, for the generation of a tumor-specific CTL epitope from PRAME, an immunodominant CTL epitope from Epstein-Barr virus protein EBNA3C, and a clinically important epitope from the melanoma protein MART-1. TOP functioned as C-terminal trimming peptidase in antigen processing, and nardilysin contributed to both the C-terminal and N-terminal generation of CTL epitopes. By broadening the antigenic peptide repertoire, nardilysin and TOP strengthen the immune defense against intracellular pathogens and cancer.
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PMID:Antigen processing by nardilysin and thimet oligopeptidase generates cytotoxic T cell epitopes. 2115 Nov 1


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