PROTEASE CLIPSIN AND METHOD OF USE

摘要

A novel chymotrypsin-like protease, termed clipsin, which binds to alpha-1-antichymotrypsin (A-1-AChy) in a sodium dodecyl sulfate-resistant manner, has a molecular weight of approximately 25,000, preferentially degrades Beta-amyloid precursor proteins (B-APP), and shows high activity for a period of a few days in neonatal rat brain is disclosed. Preparation of clipsin in a form that allows clipsin proteolytic activity to be measured under conditions substantially free of the activity other cellular non-clipsin proteases is also disclosed. Further disclosed is a method of identifying therapeutic agents for the treatment of selected neuropathologies such as Down's syndrome and Alzheimer's disease by measuring binding to or inhibition of clipsin.