Secreted proteases. Regulation of their activity and their possible role in metastasis.

Extracellular matrix metalloproteases are secreted by the resident cells of the tissue in a proenzyme form, and their extracellular activity is regulated at the level of gene expression, proenzyme activation, and interaction with inhibitors. To understand the molecular mechanisms that control the activity of ECM metalloproteases and their effect on the cellular phenotype, we have established cell lines in which the transcription of the protease genes is repressed. We also have undertaken a detailed study of the pathway of extracellular activation of interstitial procollagenase. Stable transfection of three human tumor cell lines--H-ras-transformed bronchial epithelial cells TBE-1, fibrosarcoma cells HT1080, and melanoma cells A2058--with the adenovirus E1A gene dramatically repressed the expression of the secreted proteases, type IV and interstitial collagenases, and urokinase-type plasminogen activator. Concomitantly, E1A-expressing cells showed reduced metastatic activity in vivo and reduced ability to traverse a reconstituted basement membrane in vitro. Monospecific anti-type IV collagenase antibody inhibited the invasive activity of parental tumor cell lines in the in vitro system, suggesting a possible causal relationship between the effect of E1A on the expression of secreted proteases and the reduced metastatic potential of the E1A-expressing transformants. We have also studied the mechanism of regulation of metalloprotease activity at the level of extracellular activation by investigating the cascade of proteolytic events that results in the activation of interstitial procollagenase. Cocultivation of the major cellular components of skin, dermal fibroblasts, and epidermal keratinocytes induces activation of interstitial procollagenase and prostromelysin in the presence of plasminogen. This activation occurs through a uPA-plasmin-dependent pathway in which plasmin catalyzes the first step in activation of both collagenase and stromelysin by amino-terminal processing. Activated stromelysin can in turn convert plasmin-activated collagenase into a fully active enzyme by removal of approximately 15 amino acid residues from the carboxyl end of the enzyme. This second step of activation results in a 5-8-fold further increase in specific activity of collagenase. This cascade of proteolytic events may constitute a major physiologic pathway of collagenase activation.