Purification and Characterization of a Novel Serine Protease with Fibrinolytic Activity from Tenodera sinensis (Chinese Mantis) Egg Cases

Mantis egg fibrolase (MEF-3) was purified from the egg cases of Tenodera sinensis using ammonium sulfate fractionation, gel filtration on Bio-Gel P-60, DEAE Affi-Gel blue gel affinity chromatogragphy, and MONO-Q anion-exchange chromatography. This protease had a molecular weight of 35,600 Da as determined by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis under reducing conditions and its isoelectric point was 6.0. The N-terminal amino acids sequence was Ala-Thr-Gln-Asp-Asp-Ala-Pro-Pro-Gly-Leu-Ala-Arg-Arg. This sequence was 80% homologous to the serine protease from Tritirachium album. MEF-3 readily digested the ${\alpha}$-and ${\beta}$-chains of fibrinogen and more slowly the ${\gamma}$-chains. It showed strong proteolytic and fibrinolytic activities. Phenylmethanesulfonyl fluoride and chymostatin inhibited its proteolytic activity, while EDTA, EGTA, cysteine, ${\beta}$-mercaptoethanol, elastinal, tosyl-lysine chloromethylketone, and tosyl-amido-2-phenylethyl chloromethyl ketone did not affect its proteolytic activity. Among the chromogenic protease substrates, the most sensitive one to the hydrolysis of MEF-3 was benzoyl-Phe-Val-Arg-p-nitroanilide. Based on these experimental results, we speculated that MEF-3 is a serine protease with a strong fibrin(ogen)olytic activity.