title: Isolation and characterization of insect PC2-like prohormone convertase cDNA.
abstract: Endoproteolytic processing of large precursor molecules at basic amino acid residues plays an important role in the maturation of many hormones, neuropeptides and other regulatory proteins. Enzymes performing these reactions are designated as prohormone or proprotein convertases and belong to the subtilisin family of serine proteases. The screening of a larval cDNA library of the sheep blowfly Lucilia cuprina resulted in the isolation of two cDNAs encoding a PC2-like prohormone convertase. The predicted 675 amino acid preproprotein (LcuPC2) exhibits its highest identity to invertebrate and vertebrate prohormone convertase 2 homologues, and a noticeably lower identity to the so far known insect furin-like prohormone convertases of Drosophila melanogaster and Aedes aegypti. In Northern blot experiments a signal at 2.5 kb could be detected.
authors.affiliation: Department of Endocrinology and Developmental Biology, Heinrich-Heine-University of Düsseldorf, Germany.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Mentrup
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Londershausen
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Spindler
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Weidemann
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001482:Base Composition; D001483:Base Sequence; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D003062:Codon; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D004175:Diptera / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D045706:Proprotein Convertase 2; D011498:Protein Precursors / Q000235:genetics; D012756:Sheep; D013381:Subtilisins / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D003062:Codon; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D011498:Protein Precursors; D013381:Subtilisins; D045706:Proprotein Convertase 2