Yoshifumi Matsuda

Trypsin-Like Arginine Amidases Including Plasminogen and Plasmin in Human Seminal Plasma by Affinity Adsorption and Elution

An enzyme preparation with affinity to a lysine column was detected from a DEAE-cellulose-adsorbed preparation of human seminal plasma containing plasminogen and plasmin. Two kinds of trypsin-like acidic arginine amidase activity with different affinity to lima bean trypsin inhibitor (LBTI) and aprotinin affinity column were detected from the DEAE-cellulose-adsorbed preparation after treatment of the lysine column. Two kinds of trypsin-like basic arginine amidase activity were also separated by the above-mentioned affinity adsorptions from a CM-cellulose-adsorbed preparation of human seminal plasma. The effect of calcium chloride on these two enzymes was different from human acrosin.

BASIC ARGININE ESTERASE FROM HUMAN SEMINAL PLASMA: PURIFICATION AND SOME PROPERTIES

Basic arginine esterase (amidase) with a specific activity of 3.2 mumol N-alpha-tosyl-L-arginine methyl ester (Tos-Arg-Me) esterolysis per A280 was purified about 230-fold from a CM-cellulose absorbed preparation of human seminal plasma. The purified enzyme was a single band with an apparent molecular weight of 3.4-4.1 x 10(4). The amidolytic activity of this enzyme was suppressed by aprotinin, soybean trypsin inhibitor (SBTI), leupeptin, and antipain, while alpha 1-antitrypsin, ovomucoid trypsin inhibitor (OTI), EDTA, and chymostatin had no or weak effect. This enzyme hydrolyzed synthetic basic amino acid derivatives and N-alpha-tosyl-glycyl-L-prolyl-arginine-p-nitroanilide (Tos-Gly-Pro-Arg-pNA) and N-alpha-tert-butyloxycarbonyl-L-leucyl-L-prolyl-L-arginine-p-nitroanilid e (Boc-Leu-Pro-Arg-pNA) were the best substrates. The enzymatic characteristics of present enzyme were clearly different from tissue kallikrein, acrosin, and seminin in human semen.

Human Acrosin: Purification and Some Properties

Human sperm with normal morphology and good viability were obtained by centrifugation using a discontinuous Percoll density gradient with an inner column. Acrosin (E.C.3.4.21.10) was rapidly purified from sperm by ion exchange adsorption and elution and was purified by affinity adsorption on a lima bean trypsin inhibitor (LBTI) Cellulofine column. The final preparation was found to be homogeneous on polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and to have a molecular weight of about 4 x 10(4) daltons. The enzyme had an esterolytic activity of 3.5 mumol/min/A280 with N-alpha-tosyl-L-arginine methyl ester as the substrate. Human acrosin showed a broad substrate specificity for arginine and lysine derivatives and it seemed to have a somewhat different specificity from trypsin. The optimal pH of this enzyme with amidolytic activity was 9.0. Enzyme activity was stimulated by a high concentration of calcium chloride. LBTI and aprotinin strongly suppressed the amidolytic activity with the D-valyl-L-leucyl-L-arginine-p-nitroanilide (Val-Leu-Arg-pNA) as the substrate, but alpha 1-antitrypsin and soybean trypsin inhibitor were less effective.

Enzymatic Action of Basic Arginine Amidases in Human Seminal Plasma

Three basic arginine amidases with different affinities to lima bean trypsin inhibitor (LBTI) and aprotinin affinity columns were separated in the middle molecular weight (MMW) preparation obtained from Cellulofine GCL-2000 gel filtration of CM-cellulose adsorbed human seminal plasma and were tentatively called basic human seminal plasma arginine amidase-L (BHSAA-L, with affinity to LBTI), -A (BHSAA-A, with affinity to aprotinin), and -TH (BHSAA-TH, without affinity to either). Some enzymatic properties were measured, including Ki values of LBTI and human seminal plasma proteinase inhibitor (HSP-PI) toward present enzymes. The Ki values of LBTI toward BHSAA-L and -TH were lower than those of HSP-PI and no Ki values for LBTI toward BHSAA-L were observed. The Km values of BHSAA-L and -A to some tripeptidyl-p-nitroanilide substrates seemed relatively lower than that of BHSAA-TH.