Purification and Characterization of a Novel Thermostable Papain Inhibitor from Moringa oleifera with Antimicrobial and Anticoagulant Properties

Plant cystatins (or phytocystatins) comprise a large superfamily of natural bioactive small proteins that typically act as protein inhibitors of papain-like cysteine proteases. In this report, we present the purification and characterization of the first phytocystatin isolated from Moringa oleifera...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Cotabarren, Juliana, Claver, Santiago Pablo, Abreu Payrol, Juan, García Pardo, Javier, Obregón, Walter David
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2021
País:Argentina
Institución:Universidad Nacional de La Plata
Repositorio:SEDICI (UNLP)
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:sedici.unlp.edu.ar:10915/123821
Acceso en línea:http://sedici.unlp.edu.ar/handle/10915/123821
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Bioquímica
Ciencias Exactas
Moringa oleifera
protease
plant protease inhibitor
phytocystatin
papain inhibitor
antibacterial
anticoagulant
bioactive compound
Descripción
Sumario:Plant cystatins (or phytocystatins) comprise a large superfamily of natural bioactive small proteins that typically act as protein inhibitors of papain-like cysteine proteases. In this report, we present the purification and characterization of the first phytocystatin isolated from Moringa oleifera (MoPI). MoPI has a molecular mass of 19 kDa and showed an extraordinary physicochemical stability against acidic pHs and high temperatures. Our findings also revealed that MoPI is one of the most potent cysteine protease inhibitors reported to date, with Ki and IC50 values of 2.1 nM and 5.7 nM, respectively. More interestingly, MoPI presents a strong antimicrobial activity against human pathogens such as Enterococcus faecalis and Staphylococcus aureus. In addition, MoPI also showed important anticoagulant activity, which is an unprecedented property for this family of protease inhibitors. These results highlight the pharmaceutical potential of this plant and its derived bioactive molecules.