Purification and characterization of a novel kazal-type trypsin inhibitor from the leech of Hirudinaria manillensis

Kazal-type serine proteinase inhibitors are found in a large number of living organisms and play crucial roles in various biological and physiological processes. Although some Kazal-type serine protease inhibitors have been identified in leeches, none has been reported from Hirudinaria manillensis, which is a medically important leech. In this study, a novel Kazal-type trypsin inhibitor was isolated from leech H. manillensis, purified and named as bdellin-HM based on the sequence similarity with bdellin-KL and bdellin B-3. Structural analysis revealed that bdellin-HM was a 17,432.8 Da protein and comprised of 149 amino acid residues with six cysteines forming three intra-molecular disulfide bonds. Bdellin-HM showed similarity with the Kazal-type domain and may belong to the group of “non-classical” Kazal inhibitors according to its CysI-CysII disulfide bridge position. Bdellin-HM had no inhibitory effect on elastase, chymotrypsin, kallikrein, Factor (F) XIIa, FXIa, FXa, thrombin and plasmin, but it showed a potent ability to inhibit trypsin with an inhibition constant (Ki) of (8.12 ± 0.18) × 10-9 M. These results suggest that bdellin-HM from the leech of H. manillensis plays a potent and specific inhibitory role towards trypsin.