Celiac Sprue is a multifactorial disease characterized by an intestinal inflammatory response to ingested gluten. Proteolytically resistant gluten peptides from wheat, rye, and barley persist in the intestinal lumen and elicit an immune response in genetically susceptible individuals. Here, we demonstrate the in vivo ability of a gluten-digesting protease ("glutenase") to accelerate the breakdown of a gluten-rich solid meal. The proenzyme form of endoprotease B, isoform 2 from Hordeum vulgare (EP-B2), was orally administered to adult rats with a solid meal containing 1 g of gluten. Gluten digestion in the stomach and small intestine was monitored as a function of enzyme dose and time by high-performance liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry. In the absence of supplementary EP-B2, gluten was solubilized and proteolyzed to a limited extent in the stomach and was hydrolyzed and assimilated mostly in the small intestine. In contrast, EP-B2 was remarkably effective at digesting gluten in the rat stomach in a dose-and time-dependent fashion. At a 1:25 EP-B2/gluten dose, the gastric concentration of the highly immunogenic 33-mer gliadin peptide was reduced by more than 50-fold within 90 min with no overt signs of toxicity. Evaluation of EP-B2 as an adjunct to diet control is therefore warranted in celiac patients.
Celiac Sprue is an inflammatory disease of the small intestine triggered by ingestion of dietary gluten, a family of glutamine and proline rich proteins found in common foodgrains such as wheat, rye, and barley. One potential therapy for this lifelong disease anticipates using an oral protease to detoxify gluten in vivo. Recent studies have shown that EP-B2 (endoprotease B, isoform 2) from barley is a promising example of such a glutenase, thus warranting its large-scale production for animal safety and human clinical studies. Here we describe a scaleable fermentation, refolding and purification process for the production of gram to kilogram quantities of pro-EP-B2 (zymogen form of EP-B2) in a lyophilized form. A fed-batch E. coli fermentation system was developed that yields 0.3-0.5 g purified recombinant protein per liter culture volume. Intracellular degradation of pro-EP-B2 during the fermentation was overcome by manipulating the fermentation temperature and duration of protein expression. A simple refolding protocol was developed using a fast dilution method to refold the enzyme at concentrations greater than 0.5 mg/mL. Kinetic analysis showed that pro-EP-B2 refolding is a first-order reaction with an estimated rate constant of 0.15 h(-1). A lyophilization procedure was developed that yielded protein with 85% recoverable activity after 7 weeks of storage at room temperature. The process was successfully scaled up to 100 L with comparable purity and recovery.
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