Antibacterial cysteine protease from Cissus quadrangularis L

An antibacterial Cp was extracted from the stem of Cissus quadrangularis and purified with a 5.39 fold increase in specific activity and 8.67% recovery. The molecular weight of the purified enzyme was estimated to be 39kDa by SDS-PAGE. The purified enzyme appeared as a single band on Native-PAGE. The optimum pH and temperature for protease activity were around 6.0 and 50°C respectively. The Cp showed pH stability from 3 to 10 and retained more than 90% of its relative protease activity. The addition of metal ions such as Mg²⁺ and Ca²⁺ also exhibited relative protease activity. Cp showed a potent antibacterial activity against pathogenic bacteria. About 4.74Uml^-1 of Cp from C. quadrangularis was tested for antibacterial activity against Bacillus cereus and Bacillus megaterium which subsequently showed zone of inhibition of 21 and 20mm respectively. Cp from C. quadrangularis degraded the peptidoglycan layer of bacteria by Cp was confirmed by transmission electron microscopic analysis.