Demonstration of a collagenolytic enzyme in postmortal human colon tissue

A collagenolytic enzyme was extracted from the 6000 g sediment of homogenized postmortal human colon tissue. The enzyme digests native collagen at neutral pH. The enzyme has been concentrated by ammonium sulfate precipitation. The collagenolytic activity was measured using [1-14C]acetylated calf skin collagen, solubilized in 0.1 g/1 acetic acid. There was a significant inactivation of the enzyme solution after the addition of mumol EDTA to the test volume.