Isolation and properties of extracellular proteinases from Sporothrix schenckii

Sporothrix schenckii, mainly in the yeast form of the organism, produced extracellular proteinases when cultivated in liquid media containing albumin or collagen as a nitrogen source, but did not do so in brain heart infusion medium. Isolation of two extracellular proteinases from albumin-containing medium was performed by chromatography on DEAE-Sepharose CL-6B and Sephacryl S-200. Proteinase I had a molecular weight of 36,500, an optimal pH at 6.0, and a pI at 4.8. Despite its activities in weakly acidic conditions, proteinase I demonstrated chymotrypsinlike characteristics, these being indicated by strong inhibitory activity by phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride and chymostatin and good kinetic constants for a synthetic chymotrypsin substrate, Suc-Ala-Ala-Pro-Phe-MCA. Proteinase II had a molecular weight of 39,000, an optimal pH at 3.5, and a pI at 3.8. Proteinase II showed cathepsin D-like characteristics, these being indicated by strong inhibitory activity by pepstatin, an acidic optimal pH, and good kinetic constants for hemoglobin. These two enzymes hydrolyzed natural substrates such as stratum corneum, type I collagen, and elastin although not type IV collagen. Proteinase production and cell growth in collagen-containing medium and the enzymatic digestion of skin constituents by isolated proteinases suggested that these two proteinases cooperatively enable the organism to invade skin and to obtain peptides from insoluble proteins.