A new method is described which has made possible the long-term axenic cultivation of Leishmania mexicana amastigote-like forms in Schneider's Drosophila medium supplemented with 20% (v/v) foetal calf serum. Unlike previous methods, it utilizes direct culture of parasites obtained from the lesions of infected animals rather than adaptation of promastigotes in vitro. Ultrastructural (possession ...

We have analyzed the intracellular degradation of an immune complex after its FcgammaR-mediated uptake in antigen-presenting cells (APC). Mice that lack the cathepsins (Cat) S, L, B and D allowed us to assess the direct contribution of these individual proteases to the processing events observed. CatS and CatB mediate the bulk of degradation of the Ig-125I-labeled F(ab')2 immune complex deliver...

Maturation of vaccinia virus (VV) core proteins is required for the production of infectious virions. The VV G1L and I7L gene products are the leading candidates for the viral core protein proteinase (vCPP). Using transient-expression assays, data were obtained to demonstrate that the I7L gene product and its encoded cysteine proteinase activity are responsible for vCPP activity.

The potent allergenicity of Der p 1, a major allergen of the house dust mite Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus, is thought to be related to its cysteine protease activity. Therefore, there is considerable interest in developing a sensitive assay for measuring Der p 1 activity to screen for specific inhibitors. This study demonstrates for the first time that the activity of Der p 1 can be measured ...

Protease activity is tightly regulated in both normal and disease conditions. However, it is often difficult to monitor the dynamic nature of this regulation in the context of a live cell or whole organism. To address this limitation, we developed a series of quenched activity-based probes (qABPs) that become fluorescent upon activity-dependent covalent modification of a protease target. These ...

Proteases are enzymes that cleave peptide bonds in protein substrates. This process can be important for regulated turnover of a target protein but it can also produce protein fragments that then perform other functions. Because the last few decades of protease research have confirmed that proteolysis is an essential regulatory process in both normal physiology and in multiple disease-associate...

Plasmodium cysteine proteases are essential for host-cell invasion and egress, hemoglobin degradation, and intracellular development of the parasite. The temporal, site-specific regulation of cysteine-protease activity is a prerequisite for survival and propagation of Plasmodium. Recently, a new family of inhibitors of cysteine proteases (ICPs) with homologs in at least eight Plasmodium species...

Proteinase inhibitors comprise a significant component of the protein content of many seeds and at least three functions have been ascribed to this group of proteins. They have been proposed to function as (1) protectants against seed predators, (2) as storage proteins, and (3) as regulators of endogenous protease activity, particularly in the dry seed. The evidence which supports each proposed...