Isolation and characterization of an anti-leishmanial disintegrin from Cerastes cerastes venom (original) (raw)

Snake venom disintegrins: novel dimeric disintegrins and structural diversification by disulphide bond engineering

Biochemical Journal, 2003

We report the isolation and amino acid sequences of six novel dimeric disintegrins from the venoms of Vipera lebetina obtusa (VLO), V. berus (VB), V. ammodytes (VA), Echis ocellatus (EO) and Echis multisquamatus (EMS). Disintegrins VLO4, VB7, VA6 and EO4 displayed the RGD motif and inhibited the adhesion of K562 cells, expressing the integrin α5β1 to immobilized fibronectin. A second group of dimeric disintegrins (VLO5 and EO5) had MLD and VGD motifs in their subunits and blocked the adhesion of the α4β1 integrin to vascular cell adhesion molecule 1 with high selectivity. On the other hand, disintegrin EMS11 inhibited both α5β1 and α4β1 integrins with almost the same degree of specificity. Comparison of the amino acid sequences of the dimeric disintegrins with those of other disintegrins by multiple-sequence alignment and phylogenetic analysis, in conjunction with current biochemical and genetic data, supports the view that the different disintegrin subfamilies evolved from a common ADAM (a disintegrin and metalloproteinase-like) scaffold and that structural diversification occurred through disulphide bond engineering.

Novel structural class of four disulfide-bridged peptides from Tityus serrulatus venom

Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications, 2003

LyeTx I, an antimicrobial peptide isolated from the venom of Lycosa erythrognatha, known as wolf spider, has been synthesised and its structural profile studied by using the CD and NMR techniques. LyeTx I has shown to be active against bacteria (Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus) and fungi (Candida krusei and Cryptococcus neoformans) and able to alter the permeabilisation of L-a-phosphatidylcholine-liposomes (POPC) in a dosedependent manner. In POPC containing cholesterol or ergosterol, permeabilisation has either decreased about five times or remained unchanged, respectively. These results, along with the observed low haemolytic activity, indicated that antimicrobial membranes, rather than vertebrate membranes seem to be the preferential targets. However, the complexity of biological membranes compared to liposomes must be taken in account. Besides, other membrane components, such as proteins and even specific lipids, cannot be discarded to be important to the preferential action of the LyeTx I to the tested microorganisms. The secondary structure of LyeTx I shows a small random-coil region at the N-terminus followed by an a-helix that reached the amidated C-terminus, which might favour the peptide-membrane interaction. The high activity against bacteria together with the moderate activity against fungi A.M.C. Pimenta and M.E. de Lima have contributed equally to this work Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (and the low haemolytic activity have indicated LyeTx I as a good prototype for developing new antibiotic peptides.

Amino acid structure and characterization of a heterodimeric disintegrin from Vipera lebetina venom

Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Protein Structure and Molecular Enzymology, 2001

A heterodimeric disintegrin designed as lebein was isolated from crude Vipera lebetina venom using gel filtration, anion and cation exchange chromatographies on FPLC. The amino acid sequence of each subunit determined by Edman degradation contains 64 residues with ten half-cystines and an RGD site at the C-terminal part of the molecule. The molecular mass of native lebein determined by mass spectrometry was found to be 14 083.4 Da and those of K and L subunits were 6992.05 and 7117.62, respectively. These value are in good agreement with those calculated from the sequences. This protein strongly inhibits ADP induced platelet aggregation on human platelet rich plasma with IC 50 = 160 nM. Sequences of this protein subunits displayed significant sequence similarities with many other monomeric and dimeric disintegrins reported from snake venoms. We identified an amino acid residue (N) in the hairpin loop of both subunits (CNRARGDDMNDYC) which is different from all other reported motifs of disintegrins and this subtle difference may contribute to the distinct affinities and selectivities of this class of proteins. ß

CC5 and CC8, Two Disintegrin Isoforms from Cerastes cerastes Snake Venom Decreased Inflammation Response In Vitro and In Vivo

International Journal of Molecular Sciences

Inflammation is associated with many pathology disorders and the malignant progression of most cancers. Therefore, targeting inflammatory pathways could provide a promising strategy for disease prevention and treatment. In this study, we experimentally investigated the anti-inflammatory effect of CC5 and CC8, two disintegrin isoforms isolated from Cerastes cerastes snake venom, on LPS-stimulated macrophages, both on human THP-1 and mouse RAW264.7 cell adherence and their underlying mechanisms by measuring cytokine release levels and Western blot assay. Equally, both molecules were evaluated on a carrageenan-induced edema rat model. Our findings suggest that CC5 and CC8 were able to reduce adhesion of LPS-stimulated macrophages both on human THP-1 and mouse RAW264.7 cells to fibrinogen and vitronectin through the interaction with the αvβ3 integrin receptor. Moreover, CC5 and CC8 reduced the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) mediated by the NF-κB, MAPK and AKT signaling pathways...

A comparative study of the effects of venoms from five rear-fanged snake species on the growth of Leishmania major: Identification of a protein with inhibitory activity …

Toxicon, 2011

Leishmania parasites of several species cause cutaneous and visceral disease to millions of people worldwide, and treatment for this vector-borne protozoan parasite typically involves administration of highly toxic antimonial drugs. Snake venoms are one of the most concentrated enzyme sources in nature, displaying a broad range of biological effects, and several drugs now used in humans were derived from venoms. In this study, we compared the effects of the venoms of the South American rear-fanged snakes Philodryas baroni (PbV), Philodryas olfersii olfersii (PooV) and Philodryas patagoniensis (PpV), and the North American rear-fanged snakes Hypsiglena torquata texana (HttV) and Trimorphodon biscutatus lambda (TblV), on the growth of Leishmania major, a causative agent of cutaneous leishmaniasis. Different concentrations of each venom were incubated with the log-phase promastigote stage of L. major. TblV showed significant anti-leishmanial activity (IC 50 of 108.6 mg/mL) at its highest concentrations; however, it induced parasite proliferation at intermediate concentrations. PpV was not very active in decreasing the parasitic growth, and a high final concentration (1.7 mg/mL) was necessary to inhibit proliferation by only 51.5% AE 3.6%. PbV, PooV and HttV, at final concentrations of 562, 524 and 438 mg/mL respectively, had no significant effect on L. major growth. The phospholipase A 2 of TblV (trimorphin) was isolated and assayed as for crude venom, and it also exhibited dose-dependent biphasic effects on the parasite culture, with potent cytotoxicity at higher concentrations (IC 50 of 0.25 mM; 3.6 mg/mL) and stimulation of proliferation at very low concentrations. Anti-leishmanial activity of TblV appears to be solely due to the action of trimorphin. This is the first report of anti-leishmanial activity of rear-fanged snake venoms, and these results suggest novel possibilities for discovering new protein-based drugs that might be used as possible agents against leishmaniasis as well as tools to study the biology of Leishmania parasites.

Scorpion Venom Peptides without Disulfide Bridges

IUBMB Life (International Union of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology: Life), 2005

Several hundred disulfide-bridged neurotoxic peptides have been characterized from scorpion venom; however, only few scorpion venom peptides without disulfide bridges have been identified and characterized. These non-disulfide-bridged peptides (NDBPs) are a novel class of molecules because of their unique antimicrobial, immunological or cellular signaling activities. This review provides an overview of their structural simplicity, precursor processing, biological activities and evolution, and sheds insight into their potential clinical and agricultural applications. Based on their pharmacological activities and peptide size similarity, we have classified these peptides into six subfamilies. IUBMB Life, 57: 13 -21, 2005

The disulphide bond pattern of bitistatin, a disintegrin isolated from the venom of the viper Bitis arietans

FEBS Letters, 1997

The disulphide bond pattern of the long disintegrin bitistatin (83 aniino acids, 14 cysteines) was established using structural information gathered by aniino acid analysis, Nterminal sequencing, and molecular mass determination of fragments isolated by reversed-phase HPLC after polypeptide degradation with trypsin and oxalic acid. A computer program was used to calculate all possible combinations of disulphidebonded peptides matching the mass spectrometric data, and the output was filtered using compositional and sequence data. Disulphide bonds between cysteines 16-34,18-29, 28-51, 42-48, 47-72, and 60-79 are conserved in medium-long disintegrins flavoridin and kistrin (70 amino acids, 12 cysteines), and the two cysteine residues at positions § and 24 found in bitistatin but not in other disintegrin molecules are disulphide-bridged. This linkage creates an extra, large loop, which, depending on whether the NMR structure of flavoridin or kistrin is used for modelling the structure of bitistatin, lies opposite or nearly parallel, respectively, to the biologically active RGD-containing loop.

Profiling the short, linear, non-disulfide bond-containing peptidome from the venom of the scorpion Tityus obscurus

Journal of Proteomics, 2017

Many scorpion accidents occur in the Brazilian Amazonian region and are frequently caused by Tityus obscurus. Approximately 5% of the crude venom of this species is composed of short linear, non-disulfide-bridged peptides, which have not been intensively investigated. As a consequence, only a few of these peptides have been structurally and functionally characterized to date. In the present paper, the peptide fraction of the venom was subjected to peptide profiling using an LCMS-IT-TOF/MS and MS n system. The analysis detected 320 non-disulfide bond-containing peptides (NDBPs), of which twenty-seven had their sequences assigned; among them, thirteen peptides were characterized, constituting novel toxins in T. obscurus venom. Some of the novel peptides showed similarities to hypotensin-like toxins, while other peptides appear to be natural fragments of neurotoxins. The novel peptides were submitted to a series of bioassays, revealing that many are multifunctional toxins that cause, for example, pain, edema formation and hemolysis to potentiate strong inflammatory processes and alterations in the locomotion and lifting activities in the victims of stinging. Knowledge of the complex matrix of peptides composing the venom of T. obscurus will contribute to better understanding of the complex mechanism of envenoming caused by stinging accidents. Significance: The scorpion Tityus obscurus causes many envenoming accidents of medical importance in Brazilian Amazon region; despite to this, very few is known about the toxinology of this animal. The knowledge about the venom composition and mechanisms of action is very important to understand the physiopathology processes related to the envenoming caused by this animal. The proteopeptidomic investigations of scorpion venoms in general have focused mainly the neurotoxins (which are disulfide bonds containing peptides) and large proteins. The short, linear, non-disulfide bonds containing peptides (NDBPs) represent up to 5% of scorpion venom compositions; however, they have been few investigated in comparison with the neurotoxins. The present study used a mass spectrometric approach to detect 320 NDBPs and to sequence 27 of them; pharmacological assays permitted to characterize 13 NDBPs as novel toxins involved with inflammation, pain and edema formation.

Sample Limited Characterization of a Novel Disulfide-Rich Venom Peptide Toxin from Terebrid Marine Snail Terebra variegata

PLoS ONE, 2014

Disulfide-rich peptide toxins found in the secretions of venomous organisms such as snakes, spiders, scorpions, leeches, and marine snails are highly efficient and effective tools for novel therapeutic drug development. Venom peptide toxins have been used extensively to characterize ion channels in the nervous system and platelet aggregation in haemostatic systems. A significant hurdle in characterizing disulfide-rich peptide toxins from venomous animals is obtaining significant quantities needed for sequence and structural analyses. Presented here is a strategy for the structural characterization of venom peptide toxins from sample limited (4 ng) specimens via direct mass spectrometry sequencing, chemical synthesis and NMR structure elucidation. Using this integrated approach, venom peptide Tv1 from Terebra variegata was discovered. Tv1 displays a unique fold not witnessed in prior snail neuropeptides. The novel structural features found for Tv1 suggest that the terebrid pool of peptide toxins may target different neuronal agents with varying specificities compared to previously characterized snail neuropeptides. Citation: Anand P, Grigoryan A, Bhuiyan MH, Ueberheide B, Russell V, et al. (2014) Sample Limited Characterization of a Novel Disulfide-Rich Venom Peptide Toxin from Terebrid Marine Snail Terebra variegata. PLoS ONE 9(4): e94122.