Peptide name : Demegen P-113

Source/Organism : Amphibian skin peptide

Linear/Cyclic : Linear

Chirality : L

Peptide length: 12

C-terminal modification: Linear

N-terminal modification : Amidation

Non-natural peptide information: None

Assay type : MTT/MTS assay

Assay time : 6h

Activity : 15% Cytotoxicity at 0.5 µg/ml

Cell line : U-937

Cancer type : Lymphoma cancer

Other activity : Anti-microbial activity

Amino acid composition bar chart :

Molecular mass : 1564.7977 Dalton

Aliphatic index : 0.083

Instability index : 63.8333

Hydrophobicity (GRAVY) : -2.283

Isoelectric point : 11.166

Charge (pH 7) : 5.0534

Aromaticity : 0.166

Molar extinction coefficient (cysteine, cystine): (1490, 1490)

Hydrophobic/hydrophilic ratio : 0.33333333

hydrophobic moment : 0.0453

Missing amino acid : C,W,Q,T,P,M,I,E,S,D,L,N,V

Most occurring amino acid : K

Most occurring amino acid frequency : 3

Least occurring amino acid : A

Least occurring amino acid frequency : 1

Secondary structure fraction (Helix, Turn, Sheet): (0.3, 0.0, 0.1)

SMILES Notation: C[C@H](N)C(=O)N[C@@H](CCCCN)C(=O)N[C@@H](CCCNC(=N)N)C(=O)N[C@@H](Cc1c[nH]cn1)C(=O)N[C@@H](Cc1c[nH]cn1)C(=O)NCC(=O)N[C@@H](Cc1ccc(O)cc1)C(=O)N[C@@H](CCCCN)C(=O)N[C@@H](CCCNC(=N)N)C(=O)N[C@@H](CCCCN)C(=O)N[C@@H](Cc1ccccc1)C(=O)N[C@@H](Cc1c[nH]cn1)C(=O)O

1 : Paquette DW, et al. Inhibition of experimental gingivitis in beagle dogs with topical mercaptoalkylguanidines. J Periodontol. 2006; 77:385-91. doi: 10.1902/jop.2006.050049

2 : Koszałka P, et al. Antitumor activity of antimicrobial peptides against U937 histiocytic cell line. Acta Biochim Pol. 2011; 58:111-7.

Paper title : Inhibition of experimental gingivitis in beagle dogs with topical mercaptoalkylguanidines.

Doi : https://doi.org/10.1902/jop.2006.050049

Abstract : BACKGROUND: Nitric oxide is a free radical produced in host tissues by constitutive and inducible forms of the enzyme nitric oxide synthase. Nitric oxide plays physiological roles, but it is also involved in the pathophysiology of several inflammatory conditions, including arthritis, ulcerative colitis, and circulatory shock. Local increases in inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and reactive nitrogen products have also been demonstrated in humans and animals with periodontal disease. This masked, randomized, placebo-controlled preclinical investigation examined the effect of two mercaptoalkylguanidines, mercaptoethylguanidine (MEG) and guanidinoethyldisulfide (GED), which are iNOS inhibitors and reactive nitrogen scavenging compounds, on the development of experimental gingivitis in beagle dogs. METHODS: Fifteen female, 1-year-old beagles first completed a 2-week dose-escalation experiment during which a maximum tolerated dose was determined for MEG and GED gels. Thereafter, all animals were brought to optimal gingival health by mechanical scaling, followed by rigorous daily toothbrushing over a 4-week washout period. Experimental gingivitis was then induced, with cessation of plaque control and institution of a soft diet over 8 weeks. Beagles randomly received 0.3% MEG, 0.3% GED, or placebo (vehicle) gels, topically applied twice daily to premolar teeth. Gingival inflammation, bleeding tendency, and supragingival plaque were clinically measured at baseline and at 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8 weeks. Comparisons among groups and between group pairs (active versus placebo) were made using Kruskal-Wallis tests. RESULTS: From baseline to day 7, all groups expressed similar indices. Thereafter, significant and time-dependent increases in the plaque index (PI), gingival index (GI), and percentage of bleeding on probing (%BOP) were observed in placebo-treated beagles. Mean GI scores for beagles treated with GED or MEG gels remained at or below baseline levels for the entire treatment period. At weeks 2, 3, 4, and 8, GI scores were significantly lower for MEG and GED groups compared to the placebo group (P<0.05). In addition, MEG and GED gels significantly reduced gingival bleeding responses by 8 weeks (P<0.05). Although placebo-treated beagles demonstrated %BOP scores of 43% at week 8, GED- and MEG-treated beagles exhibited %BOP scores of 21% and 26%, respectively. Since no statistical difference among PI scores was noted for any of the time points, neither mercaptoalkylguanidine appeared to affect supragingival plaque levels. CONCLUSION: The data from this preclinical study indicate that mercaptoalkylguanidines, topically administered, may significantly reduce experimental gingivitis in the beagle dog.

Paper title : Antitumor activity of antimicrobial peptides against U937 histiocytic cell line.

Doi : https://doi.org/Not available

Abstract : We investigated cytotoxic activity of antimicrobial peptides of different origin (both naturally occurring and synthetic), structure and known mechanisms of action against human histiocytic lymphoma cell line U937. The strongest cytotoxic activity against U937 cell line was shown by Pexiganan MSI-78, followed by Citropin 1.1, Protegrin 1 and a synthetic lipopeptide, N-α-palmitoyl-L-lysyl-L-lysine amide (Pal-Lys-Lys-NH₂). The cytotoxic activity of the peptides was more dependent on the time of incubation than concentration. Only for the lipopeptide, whose mode of action was restricted to disruption of electric potential of the cell membrane, the correlation between cytotoxicity and concentration was almost linear. The high cytotoxicity of Pexiganan MSI-78, Protegrin 1 and the lipopeptide could be basically explained by their membranolytic activity leading to necrosis. However, in the case of Citropin 1.1, the cell membrane integrity was disrupted only slightly and independently of the peptide concentration. Therefore, some other mechanism of action might be responsible for its strong dose-dependent cytotoxic activity, e.g., membranolytic activity leading to apoptosis. Furthermore, TNF-α production due to LPS (lipopolysaccharide) stimulation was suppressed by the presence of Citropin 1.1, Pexiganan MSI-78 or Protegrin 1, but not by Buforin 2 or the lipopeptide. Our experiments have shown that cytotoxic activity is not limited to some specific molecular structure of a peptide, but rather to the length of the peptide chain as it is likely to affect the efficiency of the tumor cell membrane disruption and interaction with LPS.