Novel activity of human angiotensin I converting enzyme: release of the NH2- and COOH-terminal tripeptides from the luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone.

Angiotensin I converting enzyme (ACE; kininase II; peptidyldipeptide hydrolase, EC 3.4.15.1) cleaves COOH-terminal dipeptides from active peptides containing a free COOH terminus. We investigated the hydrolysis of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LH-RH) by homogeneous human ACE. Although this decapeptide is blocked at both the NH2 and COOH termini, it was metabolized to several peptides, which were separated by HPLC and identified by amino acid analysis. A major product was the NH2-terminal tripeptide, less than Glu-His-Trp, and another was LH-RH-(4-10) heptapeptide, indicating that the Trp-Ser bond is cleaved to release the NH2-terminal tripeptide. ACE also released the COOH-terminal tripeptide, Arg-Pro-Gly-NH2, and then sequentially the dipeptides Gly-Leu and Ser-Try, leaving less than Glu-His-Trp intact. Thus, less than Glu-His-Trp was formed by both NH2- and COOH-terminal hydrolysis. The cleavage of LH-RH was inhibited by specific ACE inhibitors and by antibody to ACE but not by inhibitors of other enzymes, showing that the hydrolysis was indeed due to ACE. In the absence of chloride, the hydrolysis proceeded at only 16% of the maximal rate (in 500 mM NaCl), but in 10 mM NaCl it increased to 64%. In 500 mM NaCl solution, 86% of the hydrolysis was accounted for by the release of the NH2-terminal tripeptide, whereas in 10 mM NaCl, the COOH-terminal and NH2-terminal cleavage occurred about equally. The Km of LH-RH in 500 mM NaCl was 167 microM and the catalytic constant kcat was 210 min-1. When the NH2-terminal pyroglutamic acid was replaced with glutamic acid ([Glu1]LH-RH), ACE liberated almost exclusively the COOH-terminal tripeptide in 10 mM NaCl. Thus, human ACE, although it is named peptidyl dipeptidase or dipeptidyl carboxypeptidase, can cleave a protected peptide at the NH2 or COOH terminus. The enzyme could be involved in the in vivo metabolism of LH-RH and possibly other blocked peptides.