Retroviral Aspartic Proteases Research Articles

Functional Study of the Retrotransposon-Derived Human PEG10 Protease.

Paternally expressed gene 10 (PEG10) is a human retrotransposon-derived imprinted gene. The mRNA of PEG10 encodes two protein isoforms: the Gag-like protein (RF1PEG10) is coded by reading frame 1, while the Gag-Pol-like polyprotein (RF1/RF2PEG10) is coded by reading frames 1 and 2. The proteins are translated by a typical retroviral frameshift mechanism. The protease (PR) domain of RF2PEG10 contains an -Asp-Ser-Gly- sequence, which corresponds to the consensus -Asp-Ser/Thr-Gly- active-site motif of retroviral aspartic proteases. The function of the aspartic protease domain of RF2PEG10 remains unclear. To elucidate the function of PEG10 protease (PRPEG10), we designed a frameshift mutant (fsRF1/RF2PEG10) for comparison with the RF1/RF2PEG10 form. To study the effects of PRPEG10 on cellular proliferation and viability, mammalian HEK293T and HaCaT cells were transfected with plasmids coding for either RF1/RF2PEG10, the frameshift mutant (fsRF1/RF2PEG10), or a PR active-site (D370A) mutant fsRF1/RF2PEG10. Our results indicate that fsRF1/RF2PEG10 overexpression results in increased cellular proliferation. Remarkably, transfection with fsRF1/RF2PEG10 had a detrimental effect on cell viability. We hypothesize that PRPEG10 plays an important role in the function of this retroviral remnant, mediating the proliferation of cells and possibly implicating it in the inhibition of apoptosis.

Eukaryotic and retroviral aspartic proteases: similarities and differences

The superfamily of aspartic proteases consists of two large families, eukaryotic and retroviral. Eukaryotic enzymes are encoded as single chains with two‐domain structures, whereas retroviral enzymes are active as homodimers. Both families include enzymes of considerable medical relevance, thus a vast number of structures of their inhibitor complexes have been reported. Whereas some of these inhibitors are very specific for particular members of each family, others are pleuripotent. For example, recent findings of cross‐reactivity of potent inhibitors of HIV‐1 PR and plasmepsin emphasized the need to evaluate the inhibitor complexes of other aspartic proteases from both families in an effort to create novel inhibitors. Such a task is hindered by the large differences in size between proteins from two families, and additionally complicated by the deviation in the symmetry of the functional subunits. We succeeded in generating very accurate overall superposition of these enzymes, including the ligands bound in their active sites. That allows us to evaluate an overall fit and the interactions of any inhibitor, which has been developed for one family member (e.g. HIV‐1 PR), in respect to the other family (e.g. renin). We are also able to characterize the structural similarities and differences between the two families with much higher accuracy, addressing their functional and evolutionary significance.

Mouse Homologue of Skin-specific Retroviral-like Aspartic Protease Involved in Wrinkle Formation

Retroviral proteases are encoded in the retroviral genome and are responsible for maturation and assembly of infectious virus particles. A number of retroviral protease sequences with retroviral elements are integrated in every eukaryotic genome as endogenous retroviruses. Recently, retroviral-like aspartic proteases that were not embedded within endogenous retroviral elements were identified throughout the eukaryotic and prokaryotic genomes. However, the physiological role of this novel protease family, especially in mammals, is not known. During the high throughput in situ hybridization screening of mouse epidermis, as a granular layer-expressing clone, we identified a mouse homologue of SASPase (Skin ASpartic Protease), a recently identified retroviral-like aspartic protease. We detected and purified the endogenous 32-kDa (mSASP32) and 15-kDa (mSASP15) forms of mSASP from mouse stratum corneum extracts and determined their amino acid sequences. Next, we bacterially produced recombinant mSASP15 via autoprocessing of GST-mSASP32. Purified recombinant mSASP15 cleaved a quenched fluorogenic peptide substrate, designed from the autoprocessing site for mSASP32 maximally at pH 5.77, which is close to the pH of the epidermal surface. Finally, we generated mSASP-deficient mice that at 5 weeks of age showed fine wrinkles that ran parallel on the lateral trunk without apparent epidermal differentiation defects. These results indicate that the retroviral-like aspartic protease, SASPase, is involved in prevention of fine wrinkle formation via activation in a weakly acidic stratum corneum environment. This study provides the first evidence that retroviral-like aspartic protease is functionally important in mammalian tissue organization.

Closing of the Flaps of HIV-1 Protease Induced by Substrate Binding: A Model of a Flap Closing Mechanism in Retroviral Aspartic Proteases

The active site of aspartic proteases is covered by one or more flaps, which control access to the active site and play a significant role in the binding of the substrate. An extensive conformational change of the flaps takes place upon binding of substrate to the active site. A long molecular dynamics simulation was performed on the complex consisting of a peptide (CA-p2) from a natural substrate cleavage site of the gag/pol polyprotein placed in the active site of HIV-1 protease (PR) with an open flap conformation. During the simulation, the substrate induced the closing of the flaps into the closed conformation in an asymmetrical way through a hydrophobic intermediate state cluster. The nature of the residues of HIV-1 PR identified to be important in the flap closing mechanism is conserved across known structures of retroviral aspartic proteases family. The flap closing mechanism described in HIV-1 PR is proposed to be a general model for flap closing in retroviral aspartic proteases.

Evolutionarily Conserved Functional Mechanics across Pepsin-like and Retroviral Aspartic Proteases

The biological function of the aspartic protease from HIV-1 has recently been related to the conformational flexibility of its structural scaffold. Here, we use a multistep strategy to investigate whether the same mechanism affects the functionality in the pepsin-like fold. (i) We identify the set of conserved residues by using sequence-alignment techniques. These residues cluster in three distinct regions: near the cleavage-site cavity, in the four beta-sheets cross-linking the two lobes, and in a solvent-exposed region below the long beta-hairpin in the N-terminal lobe. (ii) We elucidate the role played by the conserved residues for the enzymatic functionality of one representative member of the fold family, the human beta-secretase, by means of classical molecular dynamics (MD). The conserved regions exhibit little overall mobility and yet are involved into the most important modes of structural fluctuations. These modes influence the substrate-catalytic aspartates distance through a relative rotation of the N- and C-terminal lobes. (iii) We investigate the effects of this modulation by estimating the reaction free energy at different representative substrate/enzyme conformations. The activation free energy is strongly affected by large-scale protein motions, similarly to what has been observed in the HIV-1 enzyme. (iv) We extend our findings to all other members of the two eukaryotic and retroviral fold families by recurring to a simple, topology-based, energy functional. This analysis reveals a sophisticated mechanism of enzymatic activity modulation common to all aspartic proteases. We suggest that aspartic proteases have been evolutionarily selected to possess similar functional motions despite the observed fold variations.

Modulation of the affinity of aspartic proteases by the mutated residues in active site models

The active sites of 3 types of aspartic proteases are modeled, based on crystallographic coordinates of endothiapepsin and of a model of HIV-1 protease. The enthalpies of deprotonation from neutral to mono-anion and to dianion are calculated with semiempirical minimal neglect of differential overlap, hydrogen bonding corrected (MNDO/H). This quantum mechanical study of models for the active sites of pepsins, human renin and retroviral aspartic proteases demonstrates that the replacements ofThr-218 from pepsins by Ala in human renin and of both Ser-35 and Thr-218 by alanines in retroviral proteases increases the proton affinity and modulates the charge distribution of those active sites compared to the pepsins.