title: Amino acid sequence of the alpha subunit and computer modelling of the alpha and beta subunits of echicetin from the venom of Echis carinatus (saw-scaled viper).
abstract: Echicetin, a heterodimeric protein from the venom of Echis carinatus, binds to platelet glycoprotein Ib (GPIb) and so inhibits platelet aggregation or agglutination induced by various platelet agonists acting via GPIb. The amino acid sequence of the beta subunit of echicetin has been reported and found to belong to the recently identified snake venom subclass of the C-type lectin protein family. Echicetin alpha and beta subunits were purified. N-terminal sequence analysis provided direct evidence that the protein purified was echicetin. The paper presents the complete amino acid sequence of the alpha subunit and computer models of the alpha and beta subunits. The sequence of alpha echicetin is highly similar to the alpha and beta chains of various heterodimeric and homodimeric C-type lectins. Neither of the fully reduced and alkylated alpha or beta subunits of echicetin inhibited the platelet agglutination induced by von Willebrand factor-ristocetin or alpha-thrombin. Earlier reports about the inhibitory activity of reduced and alkylated echicetin beta subunit might have been due to partial reduction of the protein.
authors.affiliation: Theodor Kocher Institute, University of Berne, Freiestrasse 1, CH-3012 Berne, Switzerland.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Polgár
authors.forename: E M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Magnenat
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Peitsch
authors.forename: T N
authors.initials: TN
authors.lastname: Wells
authors.forename: M S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Saqi
authors.forename: K J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Clemetson
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D003198:Computer Simulation; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011487:Protein Conformation; D011506:Proteins / Q000737:chemistry*; D014757:Viper Venoms / Q000737:chemistry*; D017819:Viperidae
chemical_list: D002352:Carrier Proteins; D011506:Proteins; D014757:Viper Venoms; C080995:echicetin