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Cysteine cathepsins participate in many pathological processes such as cancer and neurodegen- erative, cardiovascular, or autoimmune diseases. This work is focused on cathepsins B, L, and V (CatB, CatL, CatV), which represent attractive targets for the development of inhibitors as potential chemotherapeutics and diagnostic tools. The aim of this study was to prepare these cathepsins and structurally characterize their complexes with selected synthetic peptidomimetic inhibitors. Recombinant CatB and CatL were prepared in the yeast Pichia pastoris, and the expression conditions were optimized for the production of cathepsin zymogens. A chromato- graphic purification protocol was designed for CatB and CatL, while CatV was purified using a previously developed procedure. The obtained enzymes were used to prepare complexes with six peptidomimetic inhibitors equipped with a carbamate, vinyl sulfone, or azanitrile warhead, which selectively target CatB, CatL, and CatV, respectively. Their inhibition parameters were determined in a kinetic assay and initial crystallization conditions were identified. After opti- mizing the crystallization conditions for CatB with three carbamate inhibitors, crystals suitable for X-ray crystallography were obtained. Based on the crystal structures of these complexes, the... |
