Interaction between leukocytic elastase and Kunitz-type inhibitors from bovine spleen.

The four Kunitz-type protease inhibitors purified from bovine spleen, which include the basic pancreatic trypsin inhibitor (BPTI), form stable complexes with human leukocytic elastase. The values of the affinity constants of these complexes are similar, in agreement with the great structural similarity of the four inhibitors, but are lower than those measured for the complexes with other serine proteases. Two main factors appear to be responsible for the stability of these complexes, i.e., hydrophobic interactions and ionization phenomena that take place during complex formation. These two factors have been analyzed in terms of the general model previously used for describing the interaction between the serine proteases and their natural inhibitors.