Selective isocoumarin serine protease inhibitors block RNK-16 lymphocyte granule-mediated cytolysis

Granules that are potently cytolytic in vitro can be obtained from cytotoxic lymphocytes that kill virally infected cells and tumor cells. These granules contain pore-forming proteins and several serine proteases. Here we indicate that at least two different proteases participate in the lysis mediated by granule proteins from RNK-16 rat leukemia cells. We report twelve different mechanism-based or "suicide" isocoumarin serine protease inhibitors which have different 3- and 7-substituents that confer selectivity and reactivity towards either the chymotrypsin- ("chymase") or trypsin-like ("tryptase") protease activities of RNK-16 cells. Second order inhibition rates of inactivation (kobsd/[I]) for the RNK-16 granule proteases ranged between 164 and 22,640 M-1s-1. These new, specific and highly reactive isocoumarin serine protease inhibitors also abrogated the cytolysis mediated by lymphocytes granule proteins. The eight inhibitors with large hydrophobic or basic substituents that conferred chymase or tryptase specificities were more effective at inactivating lytic function than the four elastase-directed inhibitors with smaller substituents. All twelve new isocoumarin inhibitors blocked cytolysis at lower concentrations than 3,4-dichloroisocoumarin, a potent general mechanism-based serine protease inhibitor that also blocks RNK-16 granule protease activities and lysis.