Structural insights on P31-43, a gliadin peptide able to promote an innate but not an adaptive response in celiac disease.

Inflammation of intestinal tissue in patients affected by celiac disease (CD) originates from the adaptive and innate immune responses elicited by the undigested gliadin fragments through molecular mechanisms not yet completely described. Undigested A-gliadin peptide P31-43 is central to CD pathogenesis, entering enterocytes in vesicular compartments by endocytosis and inducing an innate immune response in CD intestinal mucosa. This study focused on the reasons why P31-43 does not behave as adaptive immunogenic agent. Once obtained by NMR analysis, the three-dimensional model of P31-43 was used to implement a series of in silico experiments aimed to explore the ability of the peptide to interact with HLA-DQ2 and the corresponding receptor onto T cells. Our results show that P31-43 is a poor ligand for DQ2 and/or T-cell receptor. This study was also aimed to investigate, from a structural point of view, the previous experimental findings by which P31-43 is able to enhance the phosphorylation level of the protein ERK2, while some P31-43 Ala-mutants decrease or totally inhibit that process. The molecular models of P31-43, P31-43 P36A, and F37A mutants were used for in silico docking experiments onto the ERK2 structure. The experiments support the hypothesis that P31-43 F37A works as an ERK2 phosphorylation inhibitor because it binds to the ERK2 phosphorylation site. This study reports on the structural properties of so far never NMR characterized gliadin peptides relevant in CD and explores details about their mechanisms of action.

Solid Phase Formylation of N-Terminus Peptides.

Formylation of amino groups is a critical reaction involved in several biological processes including post-translational modification of histones. The addition of a formyl group (CHO) to the N-terminal end of a peptide chain generates biologically active molecules. N-formyl-peptides can be produced by different methods. We performed the N-formylation of two chemotactic hexapetides, Met1-Leu2-Lys3-Leu4-Ile5-Val6 and Met1-Met2-Tyr3-Ala4-Leu5-Phe6, carrying out the reaction directly on peptidyl-resin following pre-activation of formic acid with N,N-dicyclohexylcarbodiimmide (DCC) in liquid phase. The overnight incubation at 4 °C resulted in a significant increase in production yields of formylated peptides compared to the reaction performed at room temperature. The method is consistently effective, rapid, and inexpensive. Moreover, the synthetic strategy can be applied for the formylation of all primary amines at N-terminus of peptide chains or amino groups of lysine side-chains in solid phase.

A new hexapeptide from the leader peptide of rMnSOD enters cells through the oestrogen receptor to deliver therapeutic molecules.

A 24-amino acid leader peptide of a new human recombinant manganese superoxide dismutase can enter cells and carry molecules. Here, we demonstrated that six of the 24 amino acids penetrate cells through a particular gate represented by a specific amino acid sequence of the oestrogen receptor (ER). We analysed the internalization of the synthetic hexapeptide and the cytotoxic activity of the hexapeptide conjugated to cisplatin on a cell line panel. In most cell lines, the hexapeptide delivered an amount of cisplatin that was 2 to 8 times greater than that released by cisplatin when the drug was used alone. This increased delivery increases the therapeutic index of cisplatin and reduces side effects caused by a high dosage or long-term treatment times. We may consider this hexapeptide a new molecular carrier to deliver molecules with therapeutic activity into ER(+) cells for diagnostic purposes and clinical or immune therapy.

A molecular carrier to transport and deliver cisplatin into endometrial cancer cells.

The leader peptide of a recombinant manganese superoxide dismutase (rMnSOD-Lp) acts as a molecular carrier. Clonogenic tests on normal (MRC-5) and endometrial adenocarcinoma cells (HTB-112) were carried out in the presence of rMnSOD-Lp, cisplatin alone (CC) or cisplatin conjugated to the rMnSOD-Lp (rMnSOD-Lp-CC). The platinum delivered into the cells was measured by atomic spectrophotometric absorbance. The treatments on tumor and normal cells were finally evaluated by LM and TM microscopy. Tumor cell death in the case of 0.5 µM cisplatin on its own was minimal, while in the presence of 0.5 µM rMnSOD-Lp-CC, no tumor cells survived. Atomic absorbance analysis showed that rMnSOD-Lp-CC delivered approximately four times more cisplatin into HTB-112 cells than the amount delivered using cisplatin alone. By LM observation, the cells treated with rMnSOD-Lp-CC showed signs of nuclear and cytoplasmic fragmentation, that is, apoptosis induced by the treatment. The therapeutic effect of rMnSOD-Lp-CC on endometrial cancer cells was significant, while on the normal cells it showed only a minimal toxicity. We believe that rMnSOD-Lp deserves to be considered as a molecular carrier to deliver cisplatin directly into tumor cells, thus transforming its antireplicative activity into a specific and selective antitumor agent.

Structural features of distinctin affecting peptide biological and biochemical properties.

The antimicrobial peptide distinctin consists of two peptide chains linked by a disulfide bridge; it presents a peculiar fold in water resulting from noncovalent dimerization of two heterodimeric molecules. To investigate the contribution of each peptide chain and the S-S bond to distinctin biochemical properties, different monomeric and homodimeric peptide analogues were synthesized and comparatively evaluated with respect to the native molecule. Our experiments demonstrate that the simultaneous occurrence of both peptide chains and the disulfide bond is essential for the formation of the quaternary structure of distinctin in aqueous media, able to resist protease action. In contrast, distinctin and monomeric and homodimeric analogues exhibited comparable antimicrobial activities, suggesting only a partial contribution of the S-S bond to peptide killing effectiveness. Relative bactericidal properties paralleled liposome permeabilization results, definitively demonstrating that microbial membranes are the main target of distinctin activity. Various biophysical experiments performed in membrane-mimicking media, before and after peptide addition, provided information about peptide secondary structure, lipid bilayer organization, and lipid-peptide orientation with respect to membrane surface. These data were instrumental in the generation of putative models of peptide-lipid supramolecular pore complexes.

A folding-dependent mechanism of antimicrobial peptide resistance to degradation unveiled by solution structure of distinctin.

Many bioactive peptides, presenting an unstructured conformation in aqueous solution, are made resistant to degradation by posttranslational modifications. Here, we describe how molecular oligomerization in aqueous solution can generate a still unknown transport form for amphipathic peptides, which is more compact and resistant to proteases than forms related to any possible monomer. This phenomenon emerged from 3D structure, function, and degradation properties of distinctin, a heterodimeric antimicrobial compound consisting of two peptide chains linked by a disulfide bond. After homodimerization in water, this peptide exhibited a fold consisting of a symmetrical full-parallel four-helix bundle, with a well secluded hydrophobic core and exposed basic residues. This fold significantly stabilizes distinctin against proteases compared with other linear amphipathic peptides, without affecting its antimicrobial, hemolytic, and ion-channel formation properties after membrane interaction. This full-parallel helical orientation represents a perfect compromise between formation of a stable structure in water and requirement of a drastic structural rearrangement in membranes to elicit antimicrobial potential. Thus, distinctin can be claimed as a prototype of a previously unrecognized class of antimicrobial derivatives. These results suggest a critical revision of the role of peptide oligomerization whenever solubility or resistance to proteases is known to affect biological properties.

Receptor fragment approach to the binding between CCK8 peptide and cholecystokinin receptors: a fluorescence study on type B receptor fragment CCK(B)-R (352-379).

Fluorescence titrations in a membrane mimetic solvent system allowed us to estimate that the dissociation constant of the bimolecular complex between CCK8 peptide and cholecystokinin type B receptor fragment CCK(B)-R (352-379) is in the micromolar range. When considered in the context of the full receptor/ligand model, these experiments demonstrate that the receptor fragment chosen on the basis of previous structural studies represents a reliable model system to monitor the ability of CCK8 or CCK8 analogs to bind the cholecystokinin receptor. Together with previous studies, this confirms that the receptor fragment approach adopted to define the binding mode of the CCK8 fragment of cholecystokinin with its two receptors, CCK(A) and CCK(B,) can be used to characterize the binding from the equilibrium standpoint. In this context, fluorescence spectroscopy proves to be the favored technique to measure dissociation constants in the nanomolar to micromolar range.