Leucine aminopeptidase and exsheathing activity in preparations from Haemonchus contortus

Abstract

Rogers W.P. and Brooks F. 1978. Leucine aminopeptidase and exsheathing activity in preparations from Haemonchus contortus. International Journal for Parasitology 8: 449–452. Exsheathing activity relative to leucine aminopeptidase activity (LAP) was greater in exsheathing fluid of infective juveniles of Haemonchus contortus than extracts of homogenates of the same organism. In both preparations the biological and enzyme activities were precipitated with acetone 20 v/v and ammonium sulphate, 40% saturation. Broad peaks of exsheathing and LAP activities obtained by sucrose density-gradient centrifugation and on Sephadex G150 overlapped but the peak of biological activity was always found on the low mol. wt. side of the LAP peak. LAP in exsheathing fluid was separated into two sharp peaks in polyacrylamide gradient-pore electrophoresis. In four experiments the major peak gave a mol. wt. within the limits 345,000–354,500. A minor peak was obtained at 1,800,000. Exsheathing activity remained broadly distributed but fell mostly on the low mol. wt. side of the major LAP peak. It is concluded that LAP cannot be the sole agent involved in exsheathment a lipase may be necessary to expose the substrate attacked by LAP.