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Biophysical activity of an artificial surfactant containing an analogue of surfactant protein (SP)-C and native SP-B.

ABSTRACT: Natural surfactant preparations containing phospholipids and the hydrophobic surfactant proteins B and C (SP-B and SP-C) are effective in the treatment of respiratory distress syndrome in premature infants. The limited supply, and the risk of infectious agents and immunological reactions have promoted the evaluation of synthetic peptides in surfactant preparations. However, the folding of synthetic SP-C into an alpha-helix is inefficient and alpha-helical SP-C analogues with Val-->Leu substitutions form oligomers. In order to circumvent these problems we have synthesized an SP-C analogue, named SP-C(LKS), which differs from SP-C mainly by the exchange of most of the Val residues in positions 16-28 with Leu residues to promote an alpha-helical conformation, and by the introduction of Lys residues at positions 17, 22 and 27 in order to locate positive charges around the helical circumference and thereby avoid self polymerization. CD spectroscopy showed a spectrum typical for alpha-helical peptides and SDS/PAGE disclosed a single band. The biophysical activity of artificial surfactant preparations containing SP-C(LKS) and phospholipids, with and without native SP-B, was measured using a Wilhelmy balance and a pulsating bubble surfactometer. SP-C(LKS) (3%, w/w) in a mixture of 1, 2-dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-phosphocholine (DPPC)/phosphatidylglycerol/palmitic acid (68:22:9, by wt.) suspended in 150 mM NaCl, showed rapid spreading at the air-liquid interface and produced a surface tension of <1 mN/m at minimum bubble size (gammamin) and 42 mN/m at maximum bubble size (gammamax) in the pulsating bubble surfactometer. The addition of 2% (w/w) SP-B to the preparation reduced the maximum surface tension to 33-35 mN/m, i.e. both gammamin and gammamax values were similar to those of natural surfactant preparations. Optimal in vitro characteristics were also obtained from a preparation containing SP-C(LKS), SP-B, DPPC and phosphatidylglycerol, i.e. when palmitic acid was omitted from the lipid mixture. SP-B containing surfactant preparations made up in Hepes buffer at pH 6.9, instead of in 150 mM NaCl, had similar biophysical activity provided that palmitic acid was omitted, but decreased activity in the presence of palmitic acid.

SUBMITTER: Palmblad M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC1220168 | biostudies-other | 1999 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

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Project description:Background/objectives. This study examines the surface activity, resistance to biophysical inhibition, and pulmonary efficacy of a synthetic lung surfactant containing glycerophospholipids combined with Super Mini-B (S-MB) DATK, a novel and stable molecular mimic of lung surfactant protein (SP)-B. The objective of the work is to test whether S-MB DATK synthetic surfactant has favorable biophysical and physiological activity for future use in treating surfactant deficiency or dysfunction in lung disease or injury. Methods. The structure of S-MB DATK peptide was analyzed by homology modeling and by FTIR spectroscopy. The in vitro surface activity and inhibition resistance of synthetic S-MB DATK surfactant was assessed in the presence and absence of albumin, lysophosphatidylcholine (lyso-PC), and free fatty acids (palmitoleic and oleic acid). Adsorption and dynamic surface tension lowering were measured with a stirred subphase dish apparatus and a pulsating bubble surfactometer (20 cycles/min, 50% area compression, 37 °C). In vivo pulmonary activity of S-MB DATK surfactant was measured in ventilated rabbits with surfactant deficiency/dysfunction induced by repeated lung lavages that resulted in arterial PO2 values <100 mmHg. Results. S-MB DATK surfactant had very high surface activity in all assessments. The preparation adsorbed rapidly to surface pressures of 46-48 mN/m at 37 °C (low equilibrium surface tensions of 22-24 mN/m), and reduced surface tension to <1 mN/m under dynamic compression on the pulsating bubble surfactometer. S-MB DATK surfactant showed a significant ability to resist inhibition by serum albumin, C16:0 lyso-PC, and free fatty acids, but surfactant inhibition was mitigated by increasing surfactant concentration. S-MB DATK synthetic surfactant quickly improved arterial oxygenation and lung compliance after intratracheal instillation to ventilated rabbits with severe surfactant deficiency. Conclusions. S-MB DATK is an active mimic of native SP-B. Synthetic surfactants containing S-MB DATK (or related peptides) combined with lipids appear to have significant future potential for treating clinical states of surfactant deficiency or dysfunction, such as neonatal and acute respiratory distress syndromes.

Project description:The presence of cholesterol is critical in defining a dynamic lateral structure in pulmonary surfactant membranes. However, an excess of cholesterol has been associated with impaired surface activity of surfactant. It has also been reported that surfactant protein SP-C interacts with cholesterol in lipid/protein interfacial films. In this study, we analyzed the effect of SP-C on the thermodynamic properties of phospholipid membranes containing cholesterol, and the ability of lipid/protein complexes containing cholesterol to form and respread interfacial films capable of producing very low surface tensions upon repetitive compression-expansion cycling. SP-C modulates the effect of cholesterol to reduce the enthalpy associated with the gel-to-liquid-crystalline melting transition in dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPC) bilayers, as analyzed by differential scanning calorimetry. The presence of SP-C affects more subtly the effects of cholesterol on the thermotropic properties of ternary membranes, mimicking more closely the lipid composition of native surfactant, where SP-C facilitates the miscibility of the sterol. Incorporation of 1% or 2% SP-C (protein/phospholipid by weight) promotes almost instantaneous adsorption of suspensions of DPPC/palmitoyloleoylphospatidylcholine (POPC)/palmitoyloleoyl-phosphatidylglycerol (POPG) (50:25:15, w/w/w) into the air-liquid interface of a captive bubble, in both the absence and presence of cholesterol. However, cholesterol impairs the ability of SP-C-containing films to achieve very low surface tensions in bubbles subjected to compression-expansion cycling. Cholesterol also substantially impairs the ability of DPPC/POPC/POPG films containing 1% surfactant protein SP-B to mimic the interfacial behavior of native surfactant films, which are characterized by very low minimum surface tensions with only limited area change during compression and practically no compression-expansion hysteresis. However, the simultaneous presence of 2% SP-C practically restores the compression-expansion dynamics of cholesterol- and SP-B-containing films to the efficient behavior shown in the absence of cholesterol. This suggests that cooperation between the two proteins is required for lipid-protein films containing cholesterol to achieve optimal performance under physiologically relevant compression-expansion dynamics.

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Biophysical activity of an artificial surfactant containing an analogue of surfactant protein (SP)-C and native SP-B.

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