Electrophoretic analysis of the "cross-class" interaction between novel inhibitory serpin, squamous cell carcinoma antigen-1 and cysteine proteinases

We investigated the "cross-class" interaction between cysteine proteinases and a novel inhibitory serpin, recombinant squamous cell carcinoma (rSCC) antigen-1, which inhibits a serine proteinase, chymotrypsin. rSCC antigen-1 inhibited the cysteine proteinases, papain, papaya proteinase IV and cathepsin L. Interestingly, although rSCC antigen-1 formed sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)- and heat-stable complexes with chymotrypsin, rSCC antigen-1 gave the 40 kDa fragment and small molecular mass peptide by incubation with papain without forming an SDS- and heat-stable complex. The cleavage was observed between the Gly353-Ser354 bond, indicating that rSCC antigen-1 interacts with cysteine proteinases not at the predicted reactive site P1-P1' portion (Ser354-Ser355), but at the Gly353-Ser354 of the P2-P1 portion. These findings promote understanding of the "suicide inhibition" mechanism of SCC antigen-1 against cysteine proteinases.