Development of CBAP-BPyne, a probe for γ-secretase and presenilinase

γ-Secretase undergoes endoproteolysis of its catalytic subunit, presenilin (PS), to form PS N-terminal and C-terminal fragments (PS1-NTF/CTF), which generate the active site. PS endoproteolysis, catalyzed by presenilinase (PSase), remains poorly understood and requires novel chemical approaches for its mechanistic study. CBAP is a dual inhibitor that suppresses both γ-secretase and PSase activities. To probe γ-secretase and PSase activity in cells, we have synthesized the clickable photoaffinity probe CBAP-BPyne. We found that CBAP-BPyne specifically labels PS1-NTF and signal peptide peptidase (SPP). CBAP-BPyne is a valuable tool to directly study the mechanism of endoproteolysis.