title: Molecular cloning of serine proteases from elapid snake venoms.
abstract: Serine proteases are widely distributed in viperid snake venoms, but rare in elapid snake venoms. Previously, we have identified a fibrinogenolytic enzyme termed OhS1 from the venom of Ophiophagus hannah. The results indicated that OhS1 might be a serine protease, but there was no structural evidence previously. In the present study, the primary structure of OhS1 was determined by protein sequencing, in combination with RT-PCR and 5'-RACE methods. OhS1 precursor is composed of an 18-amino acid signal peptide, a 6-amino acid putative activation peptide and 236-amino acid mature protein. OhS1 homologues from Naja atra and Bungarus multicinctus were also cloned and reported. These elapid venom serine proteases exhibited approximately 60% sequence identity with serine proteases from the snake venoms of the Viperidae and Colubridae family. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that snake venom serine protease might have a common ancestor.
authors.affiliation: Biotoxin Units, Key Laboratory of Animal Models and Human Disease Mechanisms, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, Yunnan 650223, China.
authors.forename: Yang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Jin
authors.forename: Wen-Hui
authors.initials: WH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Yun
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D016000:Cluster Analysis; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000235:genetics; D004546:Elapid Venoms / Q000201:enzymology*; D017815:Elapidae; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D010802:Phylogeny; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D017385:Sequence Homology; D012697:Serine Endopeptidases / Q000235:genetics*; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: D017931:DNA Primers; D004546:Elapid Venoms; D012697:Serine Endopeptidases