title: Identification and mapping of Casp7, a cysteine protease resembling CPP32 beta, interleukin-1 beta converting enzyme, and CED-3.
abstract: Cloning of interleukin-1 beta converting enzyme (ICE) and Caenorhabditis elegans death protein CED-3 revealed the structural and functional homology between these two proteases. It also suggested the involvement of ICE-like cysteine proteases in apoptosis. Several CED-3- and ICE-like cysteine proteases have been described, including Nedd2/Ich-1, CPP32 beta, Tx, ICErel3, and Mch2. We have previously described a mouse ortholog of cysteine protease CPP32 beta that shares strong homology with ICE and CED-3. Here, we describe the cloning of mouse and human Casp7, another member of this family of cysteine proteases. Mouse Casp7 encodes a putative 340-amino-acid polypeptide that contains all the known conserved residues required for protease function, including the QACRG sequence, aspartic acid residues for internal cleavage sites, and the residues required for substrate binding. Three RNA variants of human Casp7 were also cloned. Amino acid sequence analysis indicated that Casp7 shared high homology with CPP32 beta/Casp3 and Mch2/Casp6. Northern blot analysis demonstrated that a 2.6-kb Casp7 mRNA was expressed in various tissues except brain. Mouse interspecific backcross mapping allowed localization of Casp7 to the distal region of mouse chromosome 19, linked to Mxi1, Adra2a, and Aop1.
authors.affiliation: Department of Developmental Hematology, Amgen, Inc., Thousand Oaks, California 91320, USA.
authors.forename: T S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Juan
authors.forename: I K
authors.initials: IK
authors.lastname: McNiece
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Argento
authors.forename: N A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Jenkins
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Gilbert
authors.forename: N G
authors.initials: NG
authors.lastname: Copeland
authors.forename: F A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Fletcher
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D020170:Caspase 1; D053148:Caspase 3; D053179:Caspase 7; D020169:Caspases; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D017386:Sequence Homology, Amino Acid
chemical_list: D029742:Caenorhabditis elegans Proteins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; C505407:CASP3 protein, human; C505520:CASP7 protein, human; C505409:Casp3 protein, mouse; C505524:Casp7 protein, mouse; D053148:Caspase 3; D053179:Caspase 7; D020169:Caspases; D003546:Cysteine Endopeptidases; C089223:ced-3 protein, C elegans; D020170:Caspase 1