Cathepsin K is an enzyme Protein expressed in osteoclasts, and causes osteoporosis by decomposing elements that make up the bone matrix such as elastin, collagen, and gelatin.
Therefore, the development of Cathepsin K inhibitors could suggest a therap...
Cathepsin K is an enzyme Protein expressed in osteoclasts, and causes osteoporosis by decomposing elements that make up the bone matrix such as elastin, collagen, and gelatin.
Therefore, the development of Cathepsin K inhibitors could suggest a therapeutic approach to osteoporosis.
In this study, Cathepsin K gene cloning was performed in several formats to obtain Cathepsin K antigen. Thereafter, transfection was performed on HEK293Ecell, a mammallian cell, and the expression level was confirmed through western blot. Since it was estimated that the expression level of Cathepsin K, a Cysteine protease was toxic to the cell, and the expression level was low, three amino acids (Cysteine, Histidine, Asparagine), which play an important role in activating the hydrolysis of Cathepsin K, were point mutations to Alanine.
Of these three amino acids, only point mutation of Cysteine to Alanine increased the expression level. In order to further increase the expression level, Signal Peptide Screening from No.1 to No.200 for this format performed. As a result, the expression level was the best in Signal Peptide No.135, and N-NTA affinity chromatography was performed to obtain Cathepsin K antigen for this type. However, a fine amount of protein was expressed and was not neatly separated or purified.
As a conjecture, a G4S linker, which makes the protein flexible, was constructed between the target gene and the His-tag, considering whether the protein does not bind to His-tag.
In the same manner as above, after cloning Signal Peptides 1 to 200, Ni-NTA affinity chromatography was performed to obtain antigens.
As a result, it was confirmed that the expression level was improved compared to before attaching the G4S linker. In order to efficiently obtain Cathepsin K antigen from the economic point of view, a test was conducted using BL21-DE3 as a cell line in E.coli, not a mammallian cell.
After growing in E.coli in large quantities, cell sonication was performed to confirm which of the supernatant and pellets was highly expressed. As a result, it was identified as an inclusion body expressed in pellets. After purification to separate the inclusion body by adding urea, refolding to remove urea was performed again. In these process, the column was not eluted to see if the protein was denaturated. As a result, it was difficult to obtain an antigen from E.coli, and Cathepsin K antigen was obtained by culturing mammallian cells.