1. Skeletocutins M-Q: biologically active compounds from the fruiting bodies of the basidiomycete Skeletocutis sp. collected in Africa
Tian Cheng, Clara Chepkirui, Cony Decock, Josphat C Matasyoh, Marc Stadler Beilstein J Org Chem. 2019 Nov 19;15:2782-2789. doi: 10.3762/bjoc.15.270. eCollection 2019.
During the course of screening for new metabolites from basidiomycetes, we isolated and characterized five previously undescribed secondary metabolites, skeletocutins M-Q (1-5), along with the known metabolite tyromycin A (6) from the fruiting bodies of the polypore Skeletocutis sp. The new compounds did not exhibit any antimicrobial, cytotoxic, or nematicidal activities. However, compound 3 moderately inhibited the biofilm formation of Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus), while compounds 3 and 4 performed moderately in the ʟ-leucine-7-amido-4-methylcoumarin (ʟ-Leu-AMC) inhibition assay. These compounds represent the first secondary metabolites reported to occur in the fruiting bodies by Skeletocutis. Interestingly, tyromycin A (6) was found to be the only common metabolite in fruiting bodies and mycelial cultures of the fungus, and none of the recently reported skeletocutins from the culture of the same strain were detected in the basidiomes.
2. Comparison of protease and aminopeptidase activities in meconium: A pilot study
Ewa Skarżyńska, Paulina Wilczyńska, Bartosz Kiersztyn, Joanna Żytyńska-Daniluk, Artur Jakimiuk, Barbara Lisowska-Myjak Biomed Rep. 2020 Aug;13(2):7. doi: 10.3892/br.2020.1314. Epub 2020 Jun 9.
The successive accumulation of proteases and aminopeptidases in meconium are important physiological components of the intrauterine environment in which a fetus develops. The aim of the present study was to assess the changes in the activities of these enzymes in meconium of healthy infants, and to investigate whether there were any statistically significant associations between activity of the enzymes of interest and the mode of delivery. The activities of proteases and aminopeptidases were determined in meconium portions (n=110) using the substrates BODIPY FL casein and L-leucine-7-amido-4-methylcoumarin hydrochloride, respectively. Serial meconium samples (2-5 per neonate) were collected from healthy infants born vaginally (n=14), and by a cesarean section (n=16). Protease activity (104 RFU/h) was lower in the first meconium sample compared with the final sample from the same infant (3.99±2.03 vs. 5.76±2.24, respectively, mean ± standard deviation; P=0.004). Conversely, there was no significant difference in aminopeptidase activity (103 nM/l/h) between consecutive meconium samples (P=0.702). The ratios of the first-meconium sample enzyme activity to the last-meconium sample enzyme activity were lower for proteases compared with aminopeptidases (0.76±0.48 vs. 1.35±1.04, respectively mean ± standard deviation; P=0.014), and sustained in the infants born by a cesarean section (P=0.008). Spearman's correlation coefficient analysis between the first and last meconium samples showed the correlation increased in the infants born vaginally compared with the rest of the infants (proteases, R=0.618 vs. R=0.314; aminopeptidases, R=0.688 vs. R=0.566). Aminopeptidase activity did not exhibit any notable dynamic changes during meconium accumulation in the fetal intestine. In infants born vaginally compared with those born by a cesarean section, the activity of both proteases and aminopeptidases in the first meconium sample showed an improved correlation with the activity of the final meconium sample. This may suggest that in the intrauterine environment, during accumulation of meconium in the digestive tract of the fetus, the activity and/or levels of these enzymes and the substrates they catalyze were more stable in newborns born vaginally compared with infants born by caesarean section.
3. Enhanced recombinant expression and purification of human IRAP for biochemical and crystallography studies
Lufei Sui, Hwai-Chen Guo Biochem Biophys Rep. 2021 Jun 9;27:101042. doi: 10.1016/j.bbrep.2021.101042. eCollection 2021 Sep.
Insulin-regulated aminopeptidase (IRAP) in humans is a membrane bound enzyme that has multiple functions. It was first described as a companion protein of the insulin-responsive glucose transporter, Glut4, in specialized vesicles. The protein has subsequently been shown to be identical to the oxytocinase/aminopeptidase or the angiotensin IV (Ang IV) receptor (AT4 receptor). Some AT4 ligand peptides, such as Ang IV and LVV-hemorphin-7, have been shown to act as IRAP inhibitors that exert memory-enhancing properties. As such IRAP has been a target for developing cognitive enhancers. To facilitate detailed mechanistic studies of IRAP catalysis and inhibition, and to pave the way for biophysical and structural studies of IRAP in complex with peptide inhibitors, we report here an optimized expression and purification system using High Five insect cells. We also report biochemical characterizations of the purified recombinant IRAP with a standard aminopeptidase substrate and an optimized IRAP peptide inhibitor with a Ki of 98 nM.
