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Clinical and Diagnostic Laboratory Immunology, July 2000, p. 625-634, Vol. 7, No. 4
1071-412X/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.

Parasporin, a Human Leukemic Cell-Recognizing Parasporal Protein of Bacillus thuringiensis

Eiichi Mizuki,1,* Yu Shin Park,1,dagger Hiroyuki Saitoh,1 Satoko Yamashita,1 Tetsuyuki Akao,1 Kazuhiko Higuchi,1 and Michio Ohba2

Biotechnology & Food Research Institute, Fukuoka Industrial Technology Center,1 and Graduate School of Bioresource and Bioenvironmental Sciences, Kyushu University,2 Fukuoka, Japan

Received 29 November 1999/Returned for modification 25 January 2000/Accepted 22 March 2000

An unusual property, human leukemic cell-recognizing activity, associated with parasporal inclusions of a noninsecticidal Bacillus thuringiensis soil isolate was investigated, and a protein (named parasporin in this study) responsible for the activity was cloned. The parasporin, encoded by a gene 2,169 bp long, was a polypeptide of 723 amino acid residues with a predicted molecular weight of 81,045. The sequence of parasporin contained the five conserved blocks commonly found in B. thuringiensis Cry proteins; however, only very low homologies (<25%) between parasporin and the existing classes of Cry and Cyt proteins were detected. Parasporin exhibited cytocidal activity only when degraded by proteases into smaller molecules of 40 to 60 kDa. Trypsin and proteinase K activated parasporin, while chymotrypsin did not. The activated parasporin showed strong cytocidal activity against human leukemic T cells (MOLT-4) and human uterus cervix cancer cells (HeLa) but not against normal T cells.

* Corresponding author. Mailing address: Biotechnology & Food Research Institute, Fukuoka Industrial Technology Center, Aikawa-machi 1465-5, Kurume, Fukuoka 839-0861, Japan. Phone: 81(942)30-6644. Fax: 81(942)30-7244. E-mail: emizuki{at}fitc.pref.fukuoka.jp.

dagger Present address: Department of Life Science, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang, Kyungbuk 790-784, Republic of Korea.

Clinical and Diagnostic Laboratory Immunology, July 2000, p. 625-634, Vol. 7, No. 4
1071-412X/00/$04.00+0
Copyright © 2000, American Society for Microbiology. All rights reserved.


This article has been cited by other articles:

  • Katayama, H., Yokota, H., Akao, T., Nakamura, O., Ohba, M., Mekada, E., Mizuki, E. (2005). Parasporin-1, a Novel Cytotoxic Protein to Human Cells from Non-Insecticidal Parasporal Inclusions of Bacillus thuringiensis. J Biochem 137: 17-25 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
  • Ito, A., Sasaguri, Y., Kitada, S., Kusaka, Y., Kuwano, K., Masutomi, K., Mizuki, E., Akao, T., Ohba, M. (2004). A Bacillus thuringiensis Crystal Protein with Selective Cytocidal Action to Human Cells. J. Biol. Chem. 279: 21282-21286 [Abstract] [Full Text]  


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