Nigrocin-1

Novel cationic antimicrobial peptides, named nigrocin 1 and 2, were isolated from the skin of Rana nigromaculata and their amino acid sequences were determined. These peptides manifested a broad spectrum of antimicrobial activity against various microorganisms with different specificity. By primary structural analysis, it was revealed that nigrocin 1 has high sequence homology with brevinin 2 but nigrocin 2 has low sequence homology with any other known antimicrobial peptides. To investigate the structure-activity relationship of nigrocin 2, which has a unique primary structure, circular dichroism (CD) and homonuclear nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy (NMR) studies were performed. CD investigation revealed that nigrocin 2 adopts mainly an alpha-helical structure in trifluoroethanol (TFE)/H(2)O solution, sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) micelles, and dodecylphosphocholine micelles. The solution structures of nigrocin 2 in TFE/H(2)O (1:1, v/v) solution and in SDS micelles were determined by homonuclear NMR. Nigrocin 2 consists of a typical amphipathic alpha-helix spanning residues 3-18 in both 50% TFE solution and SDS micelles. From the structural comparison of nigrocin 2 with other known antimicrobial peptides, nigrocin 2 could be classified into the family of antimicrobial peptides containing a single linear amphipathic alpha-helix that potentially disrupts membrane integrity, which would result in cell death.

Amphibian skin is an abundant repository of bioactive peptides, important components of the defensive system. The variability of the bioactive peptide repertoires of individual species remains unclear. In this study, dark-spotted frogs were collected from Kunming in Yunnan Province, China and Guiyang in Guizhou Province, China to determine whether the bioactive peptides in amphibian skin differ between the two regions. Eight antimicrobial peptides and an antioxidant peptide were identified by screening of cDNA library. Among the identified peptides, three antimicrobial peptides (pelophylaxin-2GY, temporin-1GY, and temporin-1KM) and an antioxidant peptide (antioxidin-PN) are reported here for the first time. Nigrocin-1, nigrocin-2, and pelophylaxin-2 were expressed by frogs in both regions. Pelophylaxin-2GY and temporin-1GY were found only in the frogs from Guiyang, whereas antioxidin-PN, esculetin-1, esculetin-2, and temporin-1KM were found only in those from Kunming. This difference was confirmed by allele-specific RT-PCR. The bioactive peptides expressed clearly varied between these populations of the same species.