title: Perinerin, a novel antimicrobial peptide purified from the clamworm Perinereis aibuhitensis grube and its partial characterization.
abstract: A novel antimicrobial peptide was isolated and partially characterized from the homogenate of an Asian marine clamworm, Perinereis aibuhitensis Grube. This novel peptide, named Perinerin, was purified to homogeneity by heparin-affinity column and reverse-phase HPLC, and biologically tested with a MTS-PMS colorimetric assay. Perinerin consists of 51 amino acid residues and structurally appears to be highly basic and hydrophobic. It shows marked activity in vitro against both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria and fungi, which indicates a bactericidal effect as well. Perinerin appears to be constitutively present and its sequence is novel among all other known antimicrobial peptides. These results suggest that Perinerin has the potential to serve as a convenient "evaluation marker" for studying alterations in the biochemistry of the host, particularly with respect to environmental changes. In addition, the MTS-PMS colorimetric assay examination of antimicrobial activity appears to be superior to existing methods and may offer more general application in the search for new antibiotic molecules.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Integrated Management of Pest Insects & Rodents, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, P.R. China.
authors.forename: Weidong
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.forename: Xianghui
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ge
authors.forename: Jie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Han
authors.forename: Tao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Zheng
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D000890:Anti-Infective Agents / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000494:pharmacology; D002851:Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid; D005658:Fungi / Q000187:drug effects; D006090:Gram-Negative Bacteria / Q000187:drug effects; D006094:Gram-Positive Bacteria / Q000187:drug effects; D013058:Mass Spectrometry; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010455:Peptides / Q000737:chemistry / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000494:pharmacology; D011077:Polychaeta / Q000737:chemistry*; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D016415:Sequence Alignment
chemical_list: D000890:Anti-Infective Agents; D010455:Peptides; C494852:Perinerin