Papers by Jaime Ortega-lópez

The international journal of biochemistry & cell biology, 2015
Trichomonas vaginalis expresses multiple proteinases, mainly of the cysteine type (CPs). A cathep... more Trichomonas vaginalis expresses multiple proteinases, mainly of the cysteine type (CPs). A cathepsin L-like 34kDa CP, designated TvCP4, is synthesized as a 305-amino-acid precursor protein. TvCP4 contains the prepro fragment and the catalytic triad that is typical of the papain-like CP family of clan CA. The aim of this work was to determine the function of the recombinant TvCP4 prepro region (ppTvCP4r) as a specific inhibitor of CPs. We cloned, expressed, and purified the recombinant TvCP4 prepro region. The conformation of the purified and refolded ppTvCP4r polypeptide was verified by circular dichroism spectroscopy and fluorescence emission spectra. The inhibitory effect of ppTvCP4r was tested on protease-resistant extracts from T. vaginalis using fluorogenic substrates for cathepsin L and legumain CPs. In 1-D zymograms, the inhibitory effect of ppTvCP4r on trichomonad CP proteolytic activity was observed in the ∼97, 65, 39, and 30kDa regions. By using 2-D zymograms and mass spec...
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Papers by Jaime Ortega-lópez