1
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Mac QD, Sivakumar A, Phuengkham H, Xu C, Bowen JR, Su FY, Stentz SZ, Sim H, Harris AM, Li TT, Qiu P, Kwong GA. Urinary detection of early responses to checkpoint blockade and of resistance to it via protease-cleaved antibody-conjugated sensors. Nat Biomed Eng 2022; 6:310-324. [PMID: 35241815 DOI: 10.1038/s41551-022-00852-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2021] [Accepted: 01/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) therapy does not benefit the majority of treated patients, and those who respond to the therapy can become resistant to it. Here we report the design and performance of systemically administered protease activity sensors conjugated to anti-programmed cell death protein 1 (αPD1) antibodies for the monitoring of antitumour responses to ICB therapy. The sensors consist of a library of mass-barcoded protease substrates that, when cleaved by tumour proteases and immune proteases, are released into urine, where they can be detected by mass spectrometry. By using syngeneic mouse models of colorectal cancer, we show that random forest classifiers trained on mass spectrometry signatures from a library of αPD1-conjugated mass-barcoded activity sensors for differentially expressed tumour proteases and immune proteases can be used to detect early antitumour responses and discriminate resistance to ICB therapy driven by loss-of-function mutations in either the B2m or Jak1 genes. Biomarkers of protease activity may facilitate the assessment of early responses to ICB therapy and the classification of refractory tumours based on resistance mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quoc D Mac
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech College of Engineering and Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Anirudh Sivakumar
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech College of Engineering and Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Hathaichanok Phuengkham
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech College of Engineering and Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Congmin Xu
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech College of Engineering and Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - James R Bowen
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech College of Engineering and Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Fang-Yi Su
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech College of Engineering and Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Samuel Z Stentz
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech College of Engineering and Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Hyoungjun Sim
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech College of Engineering and Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Adrian M Harris
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech College of Engineering and Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Tonia T Li
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech College of Engineering and Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Peng Qiu
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech College of Engineering and Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA.,Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience, Atlanta, GA, USA.,The Georgia Immunoengineering Consortium, Emory University and Georgia Tech, Atlanta, GA, USA.,Winship Cancer Institute, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Gabriel A Kwong
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Tech College of Engineering and Emory School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA. .,Parker H. Petit Institute for Bioengineering and Bioscience, Atlanta, GA, USA. .,The Georgia Immunoengineering Consortium, Emory University and Georgia Tech, Atlanta, GA, USA. .,Winship Cancer Institute, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA. .,Institute for Electronics and Nanotechnology, Georgia Tech, Atlanta, GA, USA. .,Integrated Cancer Research Center, Georgia Tech, Atlanta, GA, USA.
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2
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Chen S, Yim JJ, Bogyo M. Synthetic and biological approaches to map substrate specificities of proteases. Biol Chem 2020; 401:165-182. [PMID: 31639098 DOI: 10.1515/hsz-2019-0332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2019] [Accepted: 10/11/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Proteases are regulators of diverse biological pathways including protein catabolism, antigen processing and inflammation, as well as various disease conditions, such as malignant metastasis, viral infection and parasite invasion. The identification of substrates of a given protease is essential to understand its function and this information can also aid in the design of specific inhibitors and active site probes. However, the diversity of putative protein and peptide substrates makes connecting a protease to its downstream substrates technically difficult and time-consuming. To address this challenge in protease research, a range of methods have been developed to identify natural protein substrates as well as map the overall substrate specificity patterns of proteases. In this review, we highlight recent examples of both synthetic and biological methods that are being used to define the substrate specificity of protease so that new protease-specific tools and therapeutic agents can be developed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shiyu Chen
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Joshua J Yim
- Department of Chemical and Systems Biology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Matthew Bogyo
- Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.,Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
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3
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Rut W, Groborz K, Zhang L, Modrzycka S, Poreba M, Hilgenfeld R, Drag M. Profiling of flaviviral NS2B-NS3 protease specificity provides a structural basis for the development of selective chemical tools that differentiate Dengue from Zika and West Nile viruses. Antiviral Res 2020; 175:104731. [PMID: 32014497 DOI: 10.1016/j.antiviral.2020.104731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2019] [Revised: 01/14/2020] [Accepted: 01/30/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
West Nile virus (WNV) and Dengue virus (DENV) are mosquito-borne pathogenic flaviviruses. The NS2B-NS3 proteases found in these viruses are responsible for polyprotein processing and are therefore considered promising medical targets. Another ortholog of these proteases is found in Zika virus (ZIKV). In this work, we applied a combinatorial chemistry approach - Hybrid Combinatorial Substrate Library (HyCoSuL), to compare the substrate specificity profile at the P4-P1 positions of the NS2B-NS3 proteases found in all three viruses. The obtained data demonstrate that Zika and West Nile virus NS2B-NS3 proteases display highly overlapping substrate specificity in all binding pockets, while the Dengue ortholog has slightly different preferences toward natural and unnatural amino acids at the P2 and P4 positions. We used this information to extract specific peptide sequences recognized by the Dengue NS2B-NS3 protease. Next, we applied this knowledge to design a selective substrate and activity-based probe for the Dengue NS2B-NS3 protease. Our work provides a structural framework for the design of inhibitors, which could be used as a lead structure for drug development efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wioletta Rut
- Department of Chemical Biology and Bioimaging, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370, Wroclaw, Poland.
| | - Katarzyna Groborz
- Department of Chemical Biology and Bioimaging, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370, Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Linlin Zhang
- Institute of Biochemistry, Center for Structural and Cell Biology in Medicine, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23562, Lübeck, Germany; German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Hamburg-Lübeck-Borstel-Riems Site, University of Lübeck, 23562, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Sylwia Modrzycka
- Department of Chemical Biology and Bioimaging, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370, Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Marcin Poreba
- Department of Chemical Biology and Bioimaging, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370, Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Rolf Hilgenfeld
- Institute of Biochemistry, Center for Structural and Cell Biology in Medicine, University of Lübeck, Ratzeburger Allee 160, 23562, Lübeck, Germany; German Center for Infection Research (DZIF), Hamburg-Lübeck-Borstel-Riems Site, University of Lübeck, 23562, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Marcin Drag
- Department of Chemical Biology and Bioimaging, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370, Wroclaw, Poland.
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4
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Peptides, Antibodies, Peptide Antibodies and More. Int J Mol Sci 2019; 20:ijms20246289. [PMID: 31847088 PMCID: PMC6941022 DOI: 10.3390/ijms20246289] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2019] [Revised: 12/02/2019] [Accepted: 12/05/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The applications of peptides and antibodies to multiple targets have emerged as powerful tools in research, diagnostics, vaccine development, and therapeutics. Antibodies are unique since they, in theory, can be directed to any desired target, which illustrates their versatile nature and broad spectrum of use as illustrated by numerous applications of peptide antibodies. In recent years, due to the inherent limitations such as size and physical properties of antibodies, it has been attempted to generate new molecular compounds with equally high specificity and affinity, albeit with relatively low success. Based on this, peptides, antibodies, and peptide antibodies have established their importance and remain crucial reagents in molecular biology.
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5
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Maluch I, Czarna J, Drag M. Applications of Unnatural Amino Acids in Protease Probes. Chem Asian J 2019; 14:4103-4113. [PMID: 31593336 DOI: 10.1002/asia.201901152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2019] [Revised: 10/01/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Since proteases are involved in a wide range of physiological and disease states, the development of novel tools for imaging proteolytic enzyme activity is attracting increasing interest from scientists. Peptide substrates containing proteinogenic amino acids are often the first line of defining enzyme specificity. This Minireview outlines examples of major recent advances in probing proteases using unnatural amino acid residues, which greatly expands the possibilities for designing substrate probes and inhibitory activity-based probes. This approach already yielded innovative probes that selectively target only one active protease within the group of enzymes exhibiting similar specificity both in cellular assays and in bioimaging research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Izabela Maluch
- Department of Bioorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw, University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370, Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Justyna Czarna
- Department of Bioorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw, University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370, Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Marcin Drag
- Department of Bioorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw, University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370, Wroclaw, Poland
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6
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Rut W, Nielsen NV, Czarna J, Poreba M, Kanse SM, Drag M. Fluorescent activity-based probe for the selective detection of Factor VII activating protease (FSAP) in human plasma. Thromb Res 2019; 182:124-132. [PMID: 31479940 DOI: 10.1016/j.thromres.2019.08.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2019] [Revised: 07/28/2019] [Accepted: 08/17/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The zymogen form of circulating Factor VII activating protease (FSAP) is activated by histones that are released as a consequence of tissue damage or excessive inflammation. This is likely to have consequences in a number of disease conditions such as stroke, atherosclerosis, liver fibrosis, thrombosis and cancer. To investigate the existence, as well as the concentration of active FSAP (FSAPa) in complex biological systems an active site probe is needed. We used Hybrid Combinatorial Substrate Library (HyCoSuL) to screen for natural and unnatural amino acids that specifically bind to P4-P2 pockets of FSAPa. This information was used to designing a fluorogenic substrate (Ac-Pro-DTyr-Lys-Arg-ACC) as well as an irreversible, fluorogenic activity-based probe Cy5-6-Ahx-Pro-DTyr-Lys-ArgP(OPh)2. In normal human plasma the probe showed very low non-specific reactivity with some plasma proteins but upon activation of pro-FSAP with histones, strong labelling of FSAPa was observed. This labelling could be inhibited by aprotinin and was not found in the plasma of a subject that was homozygous for a polymorphism, which leads to loss of activity, or in plasma that was depleted of FSAP by antibodies. This 2nd generation substrate exhibited 6-fold higher catalytic efficiency than the 1st generation substrate and a much higher selectivity for FSAPa over other plasma proteases. This substrate and probe can be useful to detect and localize FSAPa in normal and pathological tissue and plasma to gain more insight into its functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wioletta Rut
- Department of Bioorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370 Wroclaw, Poland
| | | | - Justyna Czarna
- Department of Bioorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370 Wroclaw, Poland
| | - Marcin Poreba
- Department of Bioorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370 Wroclaw, Poland; NCI-designated Cancer Center, Sanford-Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Sandip M Kanse
- Oslo University Hospital and University of Oslo, Norway.
| | - Marcin Drag
- Department of Bioorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Wyb. Wyspianskiego 27, 50-370 Wroclaw, Poland.
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7
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Soond SM, Kozhevnikova MV, Townsend PA, Zamyatnin AA. Cysteine Cathepsin Protease Inhibition: An update on its Diagnostic, Prognostic and Therapeutic Potential in Cancer. Pharmaceuticals (Basel) 2019; 12:ph12020087. [PMID: 31212661 PMCID: PMC6630828 DOI: 10.3390/ph12020087] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2019] [Revised: 06/06/2019] [Accepted: 06/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
In keeping with recent developments in basic research; the importance of the Cathepsins as targets in cancer therapy have taken on increasing importance and given rise to a number of key areas of interest in the clinical setting. In keeping with driving basic research in this area in a translational direction; recent findings have given rise to a number of exciting developments in the areas of cancer diagnosis; prognosis and therapeutic development. As a fast-moving area of research; the focus of this review brings together the latest findings and highlights the translational significance of these developments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Surinder M Soond
- Institute of Molecular Medicine, Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, Trubetskaya str. 8-2, 119991 Moscow, Russia.
| | - Maria V Kozhevnikova
- Federal State Autonomous Edu-cational Institution of Higher Education I.M. Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University of the Ministry of Healthcare of the Russian Federation (Sechenovskiy University), Hospital Therapy Department No. 1, 6-1 Bolshaya Pirogovskaya str, 119991 Moscow, Russia.
| | - Paul A Townsend
- Division of Cancer Sciences and Manchester Cancer Research Centre, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, and the NIHR Manchester Biomedical Research Centre, Manchester M20 4GJ, UK.
| | - Andrey A Zamyatnin
- Institute of Molecular Medicine, Sechenov First Moscow State Medical University, Trubetskaya str. 8-2, 119991 Moscow, Russia.
- Belozersky Institute of Physico-Chemical Biology, Lomonosov Moscow State University, 119992 Moscow, Russia.
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8
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Van Kersavond T, Konopatzki R, Chakrabarty S, Blank-Landeshammer B, Sickmann A, Verhelst SHL. Short Peptides with Uncleavable Peptide Bond Mimetics as Photoactivatable Caspase-3 Inhibitors. Molecules 2019; 24:E206. [PMID: 30626051 PMCID: PMC6337261 DOI: 10.3390/molecules24010206] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2018] [Revised: 12/28/2018] [Accepted: 01/03/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Chemical probes that covalently interact with proteases have found increasing use for the study of protease function and localization. The design and synthesis of such probes is still a bottleneck, as the strategies to target different families are highly diverse. We set out to design and synthesize chemical probes based on protease substrate specificity with inclusion of an uncleavable peptide bond mimic and a photocrosslinker for covalent modification of the protease target. With caspase-3 as a model target protease, we designed reduced amide and triazolo peptides as substrate mimetics, whose sequences can be conveniently constructed by modified solid phase peptide synthesis. We found that these probes inhibited the caspase-3 activity, but did not form a covalent bond. It turned out that the reduced amide mimics, upon irradiation with a benzophenone as photosensitizer, are oxidized and form low concentrations of peptide aldehydes, which then act as inhibitors of caspase-3. This type of photoactivation may be utilized in future photopharmacology experiments to form protease inhibitors at a precise time and location.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tim Van Kersavond
- Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften ISAS, Otto-Hahn-Str. 6b, 44227 Dortmund, Germany.
| | - Raphael Konopatzki
- Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften ISAS, Otto-Hahn-Str. 6b, 44227 Dortmund, Germany.
| | - Suravi Chakrabarty
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Laboratory of Chemical Biology, KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Herestraat 49 Box 802, 3000 Leuven, Belgium.
| | | | - Albert Sickmann
- Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften ISAS, Otto-Hahn-Str. 6b, 44227 Dortmund, Germany.
| | - Steven H L Verhelst
- Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften ISAS, Otto-Hahn-Str. 6b, 44227 Dortmund, Germany.
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, Laboratory of Chemical Biology, KU Leuven-University of Leuven, Herestraat 49 Box 802, 3000 Leuven, Belgium.
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9
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Cathepsin B: Active site mapping with peptidic substrates and inhibitors. Bioorg Med Chem 2018; 27:1-15. [PMID: 30473362 DOI: 10.1016/j.bmc.2018.10.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2018] [Revised: 10/16/2018] [Accepted: 10/18/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The potential of papain-like cysteine proteases, such as cathepsin B, as drug discovery targets for systemic human diseases has prevailed over the past years. The development of potent and selective low-molecular cathepsin B inhibitors relies on the detailed expertise on preferred amino acid and inhibitor residues interacting with the corresponding specificity pockets of cathepsin B. Such knowledge might be obtained by mapping the active site of the protease with combinatorial libraries of peptidic substrates and peptidomimetic inhibitors. This review, for the first time, summarizes a wide spectrum of active site mapping approaches. It considers relevant X-ray crystallographic data and discloses propensities towards favorable protein-ligand interactions in case of the therapeutically relevant protease cathepsin B.
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10
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Nguyen MTN, Shema G, Zahedi RP, Verhelst SHL. Protease Specificity Profiling in a Pipet Tip Using "Charge-Synchronized" Proteome-Derived Peptide Libraries. J Proteome Res 2018; 17:1923-1933. [PMID: 29664642 DOI: 10.1021/acs.jproteome.8b00004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
About 2% of the genome of human and other organisms codes for proteases. An important step toward deciphering the biological function of a protease and designing inhibitors is the profiling of protease specificity. In this work we present a novel, label-free, proteomics-based protease specificity profiling method that only requires simple sample preparation steps. It uses proteome-derived peptide libraries and enriches the cleaved sequences using strong cation exchange chromatography (SCX) material in a pipet tip. As a demonstration of the method's versatility, we successfully determined the specificity of GluC, caspase-3, chymotrypsin, MMP-1 and cathepsin G from several hundreds to almost 2000 cleavage events per protease. Interestingly, we also found a novel intrinsic preference of cathepsin G for Asn at the P1 subsite, which we confirmed using synthetic peptides. Overall, this method is straightforward and requires so far the lowest investment in material and equipment for protease specificity profiling. Therefore, we think it will be applicable in any biochemistry laboratory and promote an increased understanding of protease specificity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Minh T N Nguyen
- Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften-ISAS-e.V. , Otto-Hahn-Str. 6b , 44227 Dortmund , Germany
| | - Gerta Shema
- Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften-ISAS-e.V. , Otto-Hahn-Str. 6b , 44227 Dortmund , Germany
| | - René P Zahedi
- Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften-ISAS-e.V. , Otto-Hahn-Str. 6b , 44227 Dortmund , Germany.,Gerald Bronfman Department of Oncology , Jewish General Hospital, McGill University , Montreal , Quebec H4A 3T2 , Canada.,Segal Cancer Proteomics Centre , Lady Davis Institute, Jewish General Hospital, McGill University , Montreal , Quebec H3T 1E2 , Canada
| | - Steven H L Verhelst
- Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften-ISAS-e.V. , Otto-Hahn-Str. 6b , 44227 Dortmund , Germany.,Laboratory of Chemical Biology, Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine , KU Leuven-University of Leuven , Herestraat 49 box 802, 3000 Leuven , Belgium
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11
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Synthesis of a HyCoSuL peptide substrate library to dissect protease substrate specificity. Nat Protoc 2017; 12:2189-2214. [PMID: 28933778 DOI: 10.1038/nprot.2017.091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Many biologically and chemically based approaches have been developed to design highly active and selective protease substrates and probes. It is, however, difficult to find substrate sequences that are truly selective for any given protease, as different proteases can demonstrate a great deal of overlap in substrate specificities. In some cases, better enzyme selectivity can be achieved using peptide libraries containing unnatural amino acids such as the hybrid combinatorial substrate library (HyCoSuL), which uses both natural and unnatural amino acids. HyCoSuL is a combinatorial library of tetrapeptides containing amino acid mixtures at the P4-P2 positions, a fixed amino acid at the P1 position, and an ACC (7-amino-4-carbamoylmethylcoumarin) fluorescent tag occupying the P1' position. Once the peptide is recognized and cleaved by a protease, the ACC is released and produces a readable fluorescence signal. Here, we describe the synthesis and screening of HyCoSuL for human caspases and legumain. We also discuss possible modifications and adaptations of this approach that make it a useful tool for developing highly active and selective reagents for a wide variety of proteolytic enzymes. The protocol can be divided into three major parts: (i) solid-phase synthesis of the fluorescence-labeled HyCoSuL, (ii) screening of protease P4-P2 preferences, and (iii) synthesis of the optimized activity probes equipped with an AOMK (acyloxymethyl ketone) reactive group and a biotin label for easy detection. Beginning with the library design, the entire protocol can be completed in 4-8 weeks (HyCoSuL synthesis: 3-5 weeks; HyCoSuL screening per enzyme: 4-8 d; and activity-based probe synthesis: 1-2 weeks).
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12
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Deu E. Proteases as antimalarial targets: strategies for genetic, chemical, and therapeutic validation. FEBS J 2017; 284:2604-2628. [PMID: 28599096 PMCID: PMC5575534 DOI: 10.1111/febs.14130] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2017] [Revised: 04/29/2017] [Accepted: 06/06/2017] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Malaria is a devastating parasitic disease affecting half of the world's population. The rapid emergence of resistance against new antimalarial drugs, including artemisinin-based therapies, has made the development of drugs with novel mechanisms of action extremely urgent. Proteases are enzymes proven to be well suited for target-based drug development due to our knowledge of their enzymatic mechanisms and active site structures. More importantly, Plasmodium proteases have been shown to be involved in a variety of pathways that are essential for parasite survival. However, pharmacological rather than target-based approaches have dominated the field of antimalarial drug development, in part due to the challenge of robustly validating Plasmodium targets at the genetic level. Fortunately, over the last few years there has been significant progress in the development of efficient genetic methods to modify the parasite, including several conditional approaches. This progress is finally allowing us not only to validate essential genes genetically, but also to study their molecular functions. In this review, I present our current understanding of the biological role proteases play in the malaria parasite life cycle. I also discuss how the recent advances in Plasmodium genetics, the improvement of protease-oriented chemical biology approaches, and the development of malaria-focused pharmacological assays, can be combined to achieve a robust biological, chemical and therapeutic validation of Plasmodium proteases as viable drug targets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edgar Deu
- Chemical Biology Approaches to Malaria LaboratoryThe Francis Crick InstituteLondonUK
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13
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Kasperkiewicz P, Poreba M, Groborz K, Drag M. Emerging challenges in the design of selective substrates, inhibitors and activity-based probes for indistinguishable proteases. FEBS J 2017; 284:1518-1539. [PMID: 28052575 PMCID: PMC7164106 DOI: 10.1111/febs.14001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2016] [Revised: 12/02/2016] [Accepted: 01/03/2017] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Proteases are enzymes that hydrolyze the peptide bond of peptide substrates and proteins. Despite significant progress in recent years, one of the greatest challenges in the design and testing of substrates, inhibitors and activity‐based probes for proteolytic enzymes is achieving specificity toward only one enzyme. This specificity is particularly important if the enzyme is present with other enzymes with a similar catalytic mechanism and substrate specificity but completely different functionality. The cross‐reactivity of substrates, inhibitors and activity‐based probes with other enzymes can significantly impair or even prevent investigations of a target protease. In this review, we describe important concepts and the latest challenges, focusing mainly on peptide‐based substrate specificity techniques used to distinguish individual enzymes within major protease families.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paulina Kasperkiewicz
- Department of Bioorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Poland
| | - Marcin Poreba
- Department of Bioorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Poland
| | - Katarzyna Groborz
- Department of Bioorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Poland
| | - Marcin Drag
- Department of Bioorganic Chemistry, Faculty of Chemistry, Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Poland
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14
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Wilson CH, Zhang HE, Gorrell MD, Abbott CA. Dipeptidyl peptidase 9 substrates and their discovery: current progress and the application of mass spectrometry-based approaches. Biol Chem 2016; 397:837-56. [DOI: 10.1515/hsz-2016-0174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2016] [Accepted: 07/04/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
The enzyme members of the dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP4) gene family have the very unusual capacity to cleave the post-proline bond to release dipeptides from the N-terminus of peptide/protein substrates. DPP4 and related enzymes are current and potential therapeutic targets in the treatment of type II diabetes, inflammatory conditions and cancer. Despite this, the precise biological function of individual dipeptidyl peptidases (DPPs), other than DPP4, and knowledge of their in vivo substrates remains largely unknown. For many years, identification of physiological DPP substrates has been difficult due to limitations in the available tools. Now, with advances in mass spectrometry based approaches, we can discover DPP substrates on a system wide-scale. Application of these approaches has helped reveal some of the in vivo natural substrates of DPP8 and DPP9 and their unique biological roles. In this review, we provide a general overview of some tools and approaches available for protease substrate discovery and their applicability to the DPPs with a specific focus on DPP9 substrates. This review provides comment upon potential approaches for future substrate elucidation.
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Sojka D, Hartmann D, Bartošová-Sojková P, Dvořák J. Parasite Cathepsin D-Like Peptidases and Their Relevance as Therapeutic Targets. Trends Parasitol 2016; 32:708-723. [PMID: 27344362 DOI: 10.1016/j.pt.2016.05.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2016] [Revised: 04/27/2016] [Accepted: 05/25/2016] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Inhibition of aspartic cathepsin D-like peptidases (APDs) has been often discussed as an antiparasite intervention strategy. APDs have been considered as virulence factors of Trypanosoma cruzi and Leishmania spp., and have been demonstrated to have important roles in protein trafficking mechanisms of apicomplexan parasites. APDs also initiate blood digestion as components of multienzyme proteolytic complexes in malaria, platyhelminths, nematodes, and ticks. Increasing DNA and RNA sequencing data indicate that parasites express multiple APD isoenzymes of various functions that can now be specifically evaluated using new functional-genomic and biochemical tools, from which we can further assess the potential of APDs as targets for novel effective intervention strategies against parasitic diseases that still pose an alarming threat to mankind.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Sojka
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Ceske Budejovice 370 05, Czech Republic.
| | - David Hartmann
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Ceske Budejovice 370 05, Czech Republic
| | - Pavla Bartošová-Sojková
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Centre, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Ceske Budejovice 370 05, Czech Republic
| | - Jan Dvořák
- Institute of Molecular Genetics, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague 14220, Czech Republic; Institute of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague 16610, Czech Republic; School of Biological Sciences, Queen's University Belfast, Belfast BT9 7BL, UK
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Vizovišek M, Vidmar R, Fonović M, Turk B. Current trends and challenges in proteomic identification of protease substrates. Biochimie 2016; 122:77-87. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biochi.2015.10.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2015] [Accepted: 10/23/2015] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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17
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Strategies for detection and quantification of cysteine cathepsins-evolution from bench to bedside. Biochimie 2016; 122:48-61. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biochi.2015.07.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2015] [Accepted: 07/31/2015] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
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18
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Activity profiling of aminopeptidases in cell lysates using a fluorogenic substrate library. Biochimie 2015; 122:31-7. [PMID: 26449746 DOI: 10.1016/j.biochi.2015.09.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2015] [Accepted: 09/30/2015] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Aminopeptidases are exopeptidases that process peptide bonds at the N-terminus of protein substrates, and they are involved in controlling several metabolic pathways. Due to their involvement in diseases such as cancer or rheumatoid arthritis, their presence can also be used as a predictive biomarker. Here, we used a library of fluorogenic substrates containing natural and unnatural amino acids to reliably measure the aminopeptidase N (APN) activity in cell lysates obtained from human, pig and rat kidneys. We compared our results to the substrate specificity profile of isolated APN. Our data strongly support the observation that fluorogenic substrates can be successfully used to identify aminopeptidases and to measure their activity in cell lysates. Moreover, in contrast to assays using single substrates, which can result in overlapping specificity due to cleavage by several aminopeptidases, our library fingerprint can provide information about single enzymes.
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Design and Synthesis of Activity-Based Probes and Inhibitors for Bleomycin Hydrolase. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015; 22:995-1001. [PMID: 26256478 DOI: 10.1016/j.chembiol.2015.07.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2015] [Revised: 07/02/2015] [Accepted: 07/09/2015] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Bleomycin hydrolase (BLMH) is a neutral cysteine aminopeptidase that has been ascribed roles in many physiological and pathological processes, yet its primary biological function remains enigmatic. In this work, we describe the results of screening of a library of fluorogenic substrates to identify non-natural amino acids that are optimally recognized by BLMH. This screen identified several substrates with kcat/KM values that are substantially improved over the previously reported fluorogenic substrates for this enzyme. The substrate sequences were used to design activity-based probes that showed potent labeling of recombinant BLMH as well as endogenously expressed BLMH in cell extracts, and in intact cells. Importantly, we identify potent BLMH inhibitors that are able to fully inhibit endogenous BLMH activity in intact cells. These probes and inhibitors will be valuable new reagents to study BLMH function in cellular and animal models of human diseases where BLMH is likely to be involved.
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Design of a Selective Substrate and Activity Based Probe for Human Neutrophil Serine Protease 4. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0132818. [PMID: 26172376 PMCID: PMC4501687 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0132818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2015] [Accepted: 06/18/2015] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Human neutrophil serine protease 4 (NSP4), also known as PRSS57, is a recently discovered fourth member of the neutrophil serine proteases family. Although its biological function is not precisely defined, it is suggested to regulate neutrophil response and innate immune reactions. To create optimal substrates and visualization probes for NSP4 that distinguish it from other NSPs we have employed a Hybrid Combinatorial Substrate Library approach that utilizes natural and unnatural amino acids to explore protease subsite preferences. Library results were validated by synthesizing individual substrates, leading to the identification of an optimal substrate peptide. This substrate was converted to a covalent diphenyl phosphonate probe with an embedded biotin tag. This probe demonstrated high inhibitory activity and stringent specificity and may be suitable for visualizing NSP4 in the background of other NSPs.
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