RECOMBINANT PROTEINS FROM HGF AND MSP

Abstract: Recombinant proteins deriving from recombination of structural domains deriving from alpha and beta subunits of HGF and/or MSP growth factors. The recombinant proteins of the present invention contain domains selected from HGF and MSP to protect cells from death (apoptosis) induced by chemotherapeutics.

Description: RECOMBINANT PROTEINS FROM HGF AND MSP Field of the invention The present invention relates to recombinant proteins obtained from the combination of structural domains derived from the α subunits of hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and macrophage stimulating protein (MSP). In particular, the engineered factors of the invention are obtained by combining the hairpin loop and kringle domains of HGF α chains and/or MSP, together with HGF or MSP β chains, to obtain a structure having two superdomains joined by an intervening linker sequence. Moreover, the invention relates to DNA sequences encoding the above mentioned recombinant- proteins, to the expression vectors comprising said DNA sequences and to host cells containing said expression vectors. The recombinant proteins of the present invention are biologically active and protect epithelial cells and other cells from apoptosis induced by chemotherapic drugs. Therefore, these molecules can conveniently be used to prevent or treat the toxic side effects of the chemotherapeutical treatment of tumours. State of the art Hepatocyte Growth Factor (HGF) and Macrophage Stimulating Protein (MSP) are highly related proteins both structurally and functionally (Fig. 1 and 2). Both these factors are secreted as an inactive precursor, which is processed by specific proteases which recognise a cleavage site inside the molecule, dividing the protein in two subunits. 2 These subunits, named α chain and β chain, are linked by a disulphide bond. Thus, the mature factor is an α-β dimeric protein. Only the mature (dimeric) form of the factor is able to activate its receptor at the surface of the target cells (the Met tyrosine kinase in the case of HGF and the Ron tyrosine kinase in the case of MSP) and therefore to mediate biological responses (Naldini, L. et al., 1992, EMBO J. 11 : 4825-4833; Wang, M. et al., 1994, J. Biol. Chem. 269; 3436-3440; Bottaro, D. et al., 1991, Science 25: 802-804; Naldini, L. et al., 1991, EMBO J. 10: 2867-2878; Wang, M. et al., 1994, Science 266: 117-119; Gaudino, G. et al., 1994, EMBO J. 13: 3524-3532). The α chain of both factors contains a hairpin loop (HL) structure and four domains with a tangle-like structure named kringles (K1-K4; Nakamura, T. et al., 1989, Nature 342: 440-443; Han, S. et al., 1991, Biochemistry 30: 9768-9780). The precursor also contains a signal sequence (LS) of 31 amino acids (in the case of HGF) or of 18 amino acids (in the case of MSP), removed in rough endoplasmic reticulum, which directs the neoformed peptide to the secretive pathway. The β chain contains a sequence box homologous to the typical catalytic domain of serine proteases, but it has no enzymatic activity (Nakamura, T. et al., 1989, Nature 342:440-443; Han, S. et al., 1991 , Biochemistry 30:9768-9780). Both α and β chains contribute to the binding of the growth factor to the respective receptor (Met for HGF and Ron for MSP). HGF and MSP polypeptides are able to induce a variety of biological effects besides cell proliferation. The main biological activities 3 of these molecules are: stimulation of cell division (mitogenesis); stimulation of motility (scattering); induction of polarisation and cell differentiation; induction of tubule formation (branched morphogenesis); increase of cell survival (protection from apoptosis). The tissues that respond to HGF and MSP stimulation are those containing cells that express the respective Met (HGF) and Ron (MSP) receptors. The most important target tissues of these factors are epithelia of different organs, such as liver, kidney, lung, breast, pancreas and stomach, and some cells of the hematopoietic and nervous systems. A detailed review of the biological effects of HGF and MSP in the various tissues can be found in: Tamagnone, L. & Comoglio, P., Cytokine & Growth Factor Reviews, 1997, 8: 129-142, Elsevier Science Ltd.; Zarnegar, R. & Michalopoulos, G., 1995, J. Cell Biol. 129: 1177-1180; Medico, E. et al., 1996, Mol. Biol. Cell, 7: 495-504; Banu, N. et al., 1996, J. Immunol. 156: S2933-2940. In the case of HGF, the hairpin loop and the first two kringles are known to contain the sites of direct interaction with the Met receptor (Lokker, N. et al., 1992, EMBO J. 11: 2503-2510; Lokker, N. et al., 1994, Protein Engineering 7: 895-903). Two naturally-occurring truncated forms of HGF produced by some cells by alternative splicing have been described. The first one comprises the first kringle (NK1-HGF Cioce, V. et al., 1996, J. Biol. Chem. 271 : 13110-13115) whereas the second one spans to the second kringle (NK2-HGF Miyazawa, K. et al., 1991 , Eur. J. Biochem. 197: 15-22). NK2-HGF induces cell scattering, but it is not mitogenic as the complete growth factor is (Hartmann, G. et al., 1992, 4 Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 89: 11574-11578). However, NK2-HGF exhibits mitogenic activity in the presence of heparin, a glycosaminoglycan that binds the first kringle of HGF and is likely to induce dimerization of NK2-HGF (Schwall, R. et al., 1996, J. Cell Biol. 133: 709-718). Moreover NK2-HGF, being a partial agonist of Met, behaves as a competitive inhibitor of HGF as far as the mitogenic activity is concerned (Chan, A. et al., 1991, Science 254: 1382-1385). NK1-HGF has also been described to exert partial stimulation of Met and competitive inhibition of HGF mitogenic activity (Cioce, V. et al., 1996, J. Biol. Chem. 271 : 13110-13115). In the case of MSP, the modality of interaction with the Ron receptor is less understood: some preliminary studies suggest a situation opposite of that of HGF., i.e. the β chain directly binds the receptor whereas the α chain stabilises the complex (Wang, M. et al., 1997, J. Biol. Chem. 272: 16999-17004). The therapeutical use of molecules such as HGF and MSP is potentially valuable in a wide range of pathologies (Abdulla, S., 1997, Mol. Med. Today 3: 233)V Nevertheless, a number of technical as well as biological complications make the application of these molecules in clinics difficult. For example, HGF was shown to protect kidney cells against programmed cell death (apoptosis) induced by cisplatinum, but at the same time it can induce an undesired proliferation of neoplastic cells. The natural truncated forms NKl and NK2 of HGF show no problems of proteolytic activation, but they have a reduced biological activity. 5 Summary of the invention The present invention provides recombinant molecules deriving from the combination of structural domains of HGF and MSP and β subunits, which overcome the problems of the prior art molecules described above. The molecules of the invention are composed of two superdomains, one obtained combining HL and K1-K4 domains of HGF and MSP α chains, the other corresponding to HGF or MSP β chain, connected by a linker which may contain a proteolytic cleavage site. This structure allows the recombinant proteins to interact with both Met and Ron receptors, in order to induce biological responses which are synergistic and selective compared with the natural factor and the truncated forms of the prior art. Detailed disclosure of the invention The present invention relates to recombinant proteins (which will be hereinafter referred to indifferently as proteins, molecules, engineered or recombinant factors) characterised by a structure that comprises two superdomains, one consisting of a combination of HL and K1-K4 domains derived from HGF or MSP chain, the other corresponding to HGF or MSP β chain, linked by a spacer sequence or a linker. In particular, the invention relates to proteins of general formula (I) [A] - B - [C] - (D) y (I) in which [A] corresponds to the sequence (LS) rn -HL-Kl-(K2) n -(K3) 0 -(K4) p wherein (the numbering of the following amino acids being referred to the HGF and MSP sequences as reported in Fig. 1 and 2, respectively): 6 LS is an amino acid sequence corresponding to residues 1-31 of HGF or 1-18 of MSP; HL is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of HGF starting between residues 32-70 and ending between residues 96-127; or it is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of MSP starting between residues 19-56 and ending between residues 78-109; Kl is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of HGF starting between residues 97-128 and ending between residues 201-205; or it is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of MSP starting between residues 79-110 and ending between residues 186-190; K2 is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of HGF starting between residues 202-206 and ending between residues 283-299; or it is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of MSP starting between residues 187-191 and ending between residues 268-282; K3 is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of HGF starting between residues 284-300 and ending between residues 378-385; or it is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of MSP starting between residues 269-283- and ending between residues 361-369; K4 is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of HGF starting between residues 379-386 and ending between residues 464-487; or it is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of MSP starting between residues 362-370 and ending between residues 448-481 ; m, n, o, p is 0 or 1; the sum n + o + p is an integer from 1 to 3 or 0, with the proviso that n > o > p; 7 B is selected from the sequence 488-491 of HGF, the sequence 478-489 of MSP, optionally preceded by a spacer of 1 to 13 aminoacids, a consensus sequence for protease or an uncleavable sequence; [C] is the sequence of HGF β chain starting between amino acid residues 490 to 492 and ending at residue 723; or it is the sequence of MSP β chain starting between amino acid residues 484 to 486 and ending at residue 711 ; with the proviso that, when [A] coincides with HGF or MSP α chain, [C] corresponds to MSP and HGF β chain, respectively; D is the sequence W-Z, wherein W is a conventional proteolytic site, Z any sequence useful for the purification of the protein on nickel or affinity columns; y is 0 or 1. Non-limiting examples of W are consensus sequences for enterokinase protease, thrombin, factor Xa and IgA protease. Preferred proteins of general formula (I), are those in which: HL domain is the sequence of HGF α chain ranging from amino acids 32 to 127, or the sequence of MPS α chain ranging from amino acids 19 to 98; Kl domain is the sequence of HGF α chain ranging from amino acids 128 to 203, or the sequence of MPS α chain ranging from amino acids 99 to 188; K2 domain is the sequence of HGF α chain ranging from amino acids 204 to 294, or the sequence of MPS α chain ranging from amino acids 189 to 274; K3 domain is the sequence of HGF α chain ranging from amino acids 286 to 383, or the sequence of MPS α chain ranging from amino acids 275 and 367; K4 domain is the sequence of HGF α chain ranging from amino acids 384 to 487, or the sequence of MPS α chain ranging from amino acids 368 and 477; C is the 8 sequence 492-723 of HGF β chain, or the sequence 486-711 of MSP β chain. Among the possible combinations of the domains of general formula (I), the following (II) and (III) are preferred, concerning two recombinant factors named Alphabet- 1 and Alphabet-RTKR, respectively: LS „OF- HL HG F - K1 „G F - K2 „CP- K3 „OF- K4 „OF- B „ OF - C MS,- D D ( A »P hΛet 1) LS „ GF - HL HθF - K1 „c F - K2 „ θF - K3 „α F - K4 „ GF - B F-Cβ MSp -D III (Alphabet- RTKR) wherein L S„α F - HL Hα F - K1 „o F - K2 „-F- K3 „θF- K4 „θF is *<= s <= - uence ! - 487 ° H G F > Cβ is the sequence 486-711 of MSP, D is the sequence GNSAVD(H) 6 . In Alphabet- 1 factor, BfjGF * s the sequence LRVV, whereas for Alphabet-RTKR factor, Bp is the sequence RTKR-LRVV (RTKR is the cleavage site for furine proteases). The hybrid molecules of the invention are prepared by genetic engineering techniques according to a strategy involving the following steps: a) construction of DNA encoding the desired protein; b) insertion of DNA in an expression vector; c) transformation of a host cell with recombinant DNA (rDNA); d) culture of the transformed host cell so as to express the recombinant protein; 9 e) extraction and purification of the produced recombinant protein. The DNA sequences corresponding to HGF or MSP structural domains can be obtained by synthesis or starting from DNA encoding for the two natural factors. For example, screening of cDNA libraries can be carried out using suitable probes, so as to isolate HGF or MSP cDNA. Alternatively, HGF or MSP cDNA can be obtained by reverse transcription from purified mRNA from suitable cells. cDNAs coding for the fragments of HGF and MSP β chains can be amplificated by PCR (Mullis, K.B. and Faloona, F.A., Methods in Enzymol. 155 (1987) 335-350), and the amplification products can be recombined making use of suitable restriction sites, either naturally occurring in the factor sequences or artificially introduced in the oligonucleotide sequence used for the amplification. In greater detail, one of the above mentioned strategies can be the following: the portions of DNA encoding the LS, HL, Kl , K2, K3 and K4 domains are amplificated by PCR from HGF or MSP cDNA and then recombined to obtain the hybrid sequences corresponding to [A] and [C]. Oligonucleotides recognising sequences located at the two ends of the domains to be amplificated are used as primers. Primers are designed so as to contain a sequence allowing recombination between the DNA of a domain and the adjacent one. Said recombination can be carried out by endonuclease cleavage and subsequent ligase reaction, or making use of the recombinant PCR method (Innis, NA et al., in PCR Protocols, Academic Press, 1990, 177-183). 10 Subsequently the cDNA portions encoding for the A and C domains are amplificated by PCR, wherein the antisense primer used to amplifϊcate A and the sense primer used to amplifϊcate C are hybrids, i.e. they contain both the 3'-end sequence of A and the 5'-end sequence of C. Between A and C is placed the domain B, a sequence which may encode a proteolytic cleavage site. Two amplification products with an identical region artificially inserted are thereby obtained. The presence of this identical sequence allows the hybridisation of the two amplification products and thus the subsequent amplification of the recombinant construct containing the domains [A], B and C. The amplificated recombinant construct containing the three domains [A], [B] and [C], is then inserted in a suitable vector. In this step it can be decided whether to add or not the domain D {tag), obtained by synthesis as a double strand oligonucleotide, downstream the domain C. The recombinant expression vector can contain, in addition to the recombinant construct, a promoter, a ribosome binding site, an initiation codon, a stop codon, optionally a consensus site for expression enhancers. The vector can also comprise a selection marker for isolating the host cells containing the DNA construct. Yeast or bacteria plasmids, such as plasmids suitable for Escherichia Coli, can be used as vectors, as well as bacteriophages, viruses, retroviruses, or DNA. The vectors are cloned preferably in bacterial cells, for example in Escherichia Coli, as described in Maniatis, Molecular Cloning, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, New York, 1982, and the colonies can be 11 selected, for example, by hybridisation with radiolabelled oligonucleotide probes; subsequently, the rDNA sequence extracted from the positive colonies is determined by known methods. The vector with the recombinant construct can be introduced in the host cell according to the competent cell method, the protoplast method, the calcium phosphate method, the DEAE-dextran method, the electric impulses method, the in vitro packaging method, the viral vector method, the micro-injection method, or other suitable techniques. Host cells can be prokaryotic or eukaryotic, such as bacteria, yeasts or mammal cells, and they will be such as to effectively produce the recombinant protein. After transformation, cells are grown in a suitable medium, which can be for example MEM, DMEM or RPMI 1640 in the case of mammal host cells. The recombinant protein is secreted in the culture medium from which it can be recovered and purified with different methods, such as mass exclusion, absorption, affinity chromatography, salting-out, precipitation, dialysis, ultrafiltration. A simple, rapid system for the production of the molecules of the invention is, for example, transient expression in mammal cells. Accordingly, the plasmid containing the recombinant DNA fragment, for example PMT2 (Sambrook, J. et al., Molecular Cloning, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 1989), containing the recombinant DNA fragment, is transfected in suitable recipient cells, such as Cos7 (Sambrook, J. et al., supra) by the calcium phosphate technique or other 12 equivalent techniques. Some days after transfection, the conditioned medium of the transfected cells is collected, cleared by centrifugation and analysed for its content in factor. For this analysis, antibodies directed against HGF or MSP, or against any tag sequence, can be used: the supernatant is immunoprecipitated and then analysed by western blot with the same antibody. The supernatant containing the recombinant factor can also be used directly for biochemical and biological tests. The protein can be purified, for example, if domain D is a poly-histidine tag sequence, by absorption on a nickel resin column and subsequent elution with imidazole. The ability of the recombinant factors to bind both Met and Ron receptors, correctly synthesized and maturated in eukaryotic cells, has been tested. It has been found that hybrid factors containing HGF α chain and MSP β chain, i.e. the domains more directly involved in the binding with Met and Ron, respectively, are correctly synthesized by eukaryotic cells. The maturation (cleavage of the proteolytic site) takes place in the presence of serum, on a reduced but significant fraction of said proteins. Moreover, it has been shown that the modification of the sequence of the proteolytic site permits the maturation of the hybrid factor also in the absence of serum. Among the applications of the recombinant molecules of the invention, the following can be cited: prevention of myelotoxicity; in particular they can be used for the expansion of marrow precursors, to increase proliferation of the hematopoietic precursors or to stimulate their entry in circle; 13 prevention of liver and kidney toxicity, and of mucositis following antineoplastic treatments; in particular the recombinant factors can be used to prevent toxicity (apoptosis) on differentiated cell elements of liver, kidney and mucosa of the gastroenteral tract, and to stimulate staminal elements of cutis and mucosas to allow the regeneration of germinative layers; prevention of chemotherapeutic neurotoxicity. In general, the proteins of the invention provide the following advantages, compared with the parent molecules HGF and MSP: - the capability of binding both Met and Ron receptors gives these molecules a wider activity; by modification of the proteolytic site, hybrid factors can be obtained which are activated by proteases of the endoplasmic reticulum (such as furines), during their synthesis; - when the proteolytic site is removed, permanently immature forms of the factors can be obtained, having a potential partial agonistic or antagonistic activity; the different functional domains can be combined so as to modulate the biological effects, increasing the favourable ones and reducing those undesired (for example, protection from apoptosis in favour of cell proliferation). The invention has to be considered also directed at amino acid and nucleotide sequences referred to formula (I), having modifications which for example derive from degeneration of genetic code, without therefore modifying the amino acid sequence, or from the deletion, substitution, 14 insertion, inversion or addition of nucleotides and/or bases according to all the possible methods known in the art. Furthermore, the invention relates , to the expression vectors comprising a sequence encoding for a protein of general formula (I), which can be plasmids, bacteriophages, viruses, retroviruses, or others, and to host cells containing said expression vectors. Finally, the invention relates to the use of the recombinant proteins as therapeutical agents, and to pharmaceutical compositions containing an effective amount of the recombinant proteins together with pharmacologically acceptable excipients. Description of the figures (In the following, -His located after the name of the parent factors, truncated or recombinant, or of the plasmids, means that the respective sequences contain a poly-histidine tag). Fig. 1: a) Nucleotide and amino acid sequence of human HGF (Gene Bank # M73239; Weidner, K.M., et al, 1991, Proc. Acad. Sci. USA, 88:7001- 7005). In contrast with the cited reference, in the numbering used herein, nucleotide No. 1 is the first base of the initiation codon (the A of the first ATG). The first amino acid is methionine. The cDNA untranslated regions at 5' and 3' are not represented neither considered in the numbering. b) Nucleotide and amino acid sequence of human MSP (Gene Bank # L11924; Yoshimura, T., et al, 1993, J. Biol. Chem., 268: 15461-15468). In contrast with the cited reference, in the numbering used herein nucleo- 15 tide No. 1 is the first base of the initiation codon (the A of the first ATG). The first amino acid is methionine. The cDNA untranslated regions at 5' and 3' are not represented neither considered in the numbering. Fig. 2: a) Molecular structure of the factor Alphabet- 1. Domain [A] is the HGF α chain, domain B is the natural cleavage site of HGF, domain C is the MSP β chain and domain D is a poly- histidine Tag sequence (GNSAVDHHHHHH). b) Nucleotide and amino acid sequence of Factor Alphabet- 1. The initiation (ATG) and stop (TGA) codons are underlined. Fig. 3: a) Molecular structure of the Factor Alphabet-RTKR. This construct differs from factor Alphabet- 1 in that its domain β includes the natural cleavage site of HGF plus a furine protease cleavage site. b) Nucleotide and amino acid sequence of Factor Alphabet-RTKR. Fig. 4: production of the recombinant factors of the invention. a) Amplification of domains A and C and their subsequent ligation. The fragment named PCR1 is obtained by PCR from a plasmid containing a construct encoding domain A (α chain), whereas the one named PCR2 is obtained by PCR from a plasmid containing a construct encoding domain C (β chain). Contained within both primers B and C is an identical sequence which encodes the potential proteolytic cleavage site (domain B, coloured in black). Being inserted in between the two amplification products, this sequence allows subsequent joining of the A 16 and C domains. b) Hybridisation of the fragments and amplification of the recombinant factor. The two amplificated PCR1 and PCR2 are mixed and subjected to the following treatments: (1) first denaturation at 95°C for 3 min. and subsequent hybridisation for 30 sec; (2) elongation at 72°C for 2 min in the presence of a thermostable DNA polymerase. Steps (1) and (2) are repeated for a further four times only modifying the denaturation conditions, which are set at 94°C for 30 sec; (3) subsequently the mixture is added with primers A and D (already used for the first amplification of the constructs) and a conventional PCR is carried out to amplifϊcate the recombinant construct. Fig. 5: Production of recombinant factor Alphabet- 1. The metabolically labelled proteins were absorbed on Sepharose- heparin beads and detected by autoradiography after electrophoresis on polyacrylamide gel. Immature forms of HGF (Pro-HGF, control) and Alphabet- 1 (Pro-αβ-1), and α and β chains of HGF and Alphabet- 1 are indicated. Fig. 6: Production of recombinant factor Alphabet-RTKR. The metabolically labelled proteins were absorbed on Sepharose- heparin beads and detected by autoradiography after electrophoresis on polyacrylamide gel. Immature forms of Alphabet-1 (Pro-αβ-1) and Alphabet-RTKR (Pro- αβ -RTKR), and α and β chains of Alphabet-RTKR are indicated. The examples reported in the following illustrate the invention in greater detail. 17 Example 1 Preparation of the recombinant construct encoding Factor Alphabet- 1 HGF and MSP cDNAs shown in Figures 1 and 2 were used as starting DNA. HGF cDNA was obtained with the RT-PCR technique (Reverse Transcriptase PCR; in: Innis, M. A., et al., PCR Protocols, Academic Press, 1990, 21-27) human lung fϊbroblasts cell line (MRC5; Naldini, L. et al., 1991 , EMBO J. 10: 2867-2878). MSP cDNA was obtained with the same technique from human liver (Gaudino, G., et al., 1994, EMBO J. 13: 3524-3532). The fragment corresponding to HGF α chain was amplificated by PCR from HGF cDNA, subcloned in the plasmid pBluescript SK (GenBank #52325) in the site EcoRV using the following primers: Primer A (sense) 5' CCACCGCGGTGGCGGCCGCTCTAGAACTAGTGGATC 3' Primer B (antisense) 5' ecccccaaccacTCGCAATTGTTTCGTTTT 3' In Primer A, which is derived from the plasmid-pBluescript sequence polycloning site, the underlined sequence is the restriction site for enzyme Xbal, upstream the site EcoRV from which HGF cDNA starts. The underlined sequence of Primer B is the region overlapping with Primer C (the lower-letter sequence corresponds to the first bases of MSP β chain). The sequence of the cleavage site (TTGCGAGTGGTT) is generated by the identical regions of Primers B and C. The PCR product (PCR1) was then purified by electrophoresis on agarose gel. The fragment corresponding to MSP β chain was amplificated by 18 PCR from MSP cD A using the following primers: Primer C (sense) 5' aaacaattgcgaGTGGTTGGGGGCCATCCG 3' Primer D (antisense) S' CCCAAC-CrTTCAATGATGATGATGATGATGATGGTCGACGGCGCTATCC Cacccagtctcatgaccttg 3' The underlined sequence in Primer C is the region overlapping with Primer B (the small-letter sequence corresponds to the last bases of HGF α chain). In Primer D, the sequence AAGCTT is the restriction site for enzyme Hindlll, the tag-encoding sequence is underlined and the portion in small-letters corresponds to the last bases of MSP β chain. The PCR product (PCR2) was then purified by electrophoresis on agarose gel. The two amplificates PCR1 and PCR2 were mixed and subjected to the following treatments: (1) first denaturation at 95°C for 3 min and subsequent hybridisation at 68°C (hybridisation temperature calculated on the basis of the identity region between Primers B and C) for 30 sec; (2) elongation at 72°C for 2- min. in the presence of a thermostable DNA polymerase. Steps (1) and (2) were repeated for a further four times modifying the conditions of denaturation, carried out at 92°C for 1 min, and lowering hybridisation temperature by 1°C at each cycle; (3) subsequently the mixture was added with primers A and D already used for the first amplification of the constructs and a conventional PCR was carried out to amplificate the recombinant construct. The resulting PCR product was digested with the restriction 19 enzymes Xbal and Hindlll, purified by electrophoresis on agarose gel and subcloned in Xbal-Hindlll sites of the expression vector pcDNA3.1 (-) (Invitrogen), thereby obtaining a recombinant plasmid, containing the complete Alphabet- 1 (in the following named pcDNA3-Alphabet-l). Example 2 Preparation of the recombinant construct encoding factor Alphabet-RTKR Plasmid pCDNA3-Alphabet-l described above was used as starting DNA. The cDNA of Alphabet- 1 contains two restriction sites for the enzyme Bglll, at position 1204 and 1744, respectively. Using these sites, the original sequence 1204-1744 (containing the cleavage site) was replaced by a cassette in which the sequence RTKR (consense for cleavage by furine proteases) is added by site-specific mutagenesis upstream the HGF cleavage natural site. For this purpose, two amplificates from Alphabet- 1 cDNA were prepared by PCR. The first (PCR3), corresponding to the fragment BglIIi204"" c l eava S e site" of Alphabet- 1, was amplificated using the following primers: Primer G (sense) 5' ATCCCAAACAAGATCTGGACTAACATGTTC 3' Primer H (antisense) 5' CTCGCAATCGTTTCGTTCTGGCACAAGATATTAC 3' The underlined sequence in Primer G is the restriction site for enzyme Bglll. In Primer H the bold-faced bases are point mutations inserted in the oligonucleotide to create the sequence RTKR upstream the HGF cleavage sequence, whereas the underlined sequence is the region 20 identical with Primer I. The PCR product (PCR3) was then purified by electrophoresis on agarose gel. The second amplificate (PCR4), corresponding to the fragment "cleavage site"-BglIIi744 of Alphabet- 1, was obtained using the following primers: Primer I (sense) 5' TCTTGTGCCAGAACGAAACGATTGCGAGTGG 3' Primer L (antisense) 5' GGTCACAGATCTCTCCAGCTTGAG 3' In Primer I, bold-faced bases are point mutations inserted in the oligonucleotide to create sequence RTKR, whereas the underlined sequence is the region of identity with Primer H. The underlined sequence in Primer L is the restriction site for enzyme Bglll. The PCR product (PCR4) was then purified by electrophoresis on agarose gel. The two amplificates PCR3 and PCR4 were mixed and subjected to the following treatments: (1) first denaturation at 95 °C for 3 min and subsequent hybridisation at 68°C (hybridisation temperature calculated on the basis of the region of identity of Primers H and I) for 30 sec; (2) elongation at 72°C for 2 min. in the presence of a thermostable DNA polymerase. Steps (1) and (2) were repeated for a further four times modifying the conditions of denaturation, carried out at 92°C for 1 min., and lowering by 1°C the hybridisation temperature at each cycle; (3) subsequently the mixture was added with primers G and L already used for the first amplification of the constructs and a conventional PCR was carried out to amplificate the recombinant construct. The resulting PCR 21 recombinant product was digested with the restriction enzyme Bglll, purified by electrophoresis on agarose gel and subcloned in the plasmid pCDNA3 - Alphabet- 1 by replacing the fragment Bglll i204 _ BglH 1744 originally present. Example 3 Production of the recombinant molecules The expression vector pcDNA3 contains the promoter of human cytomegalovirus immediate-early gene (CMV) and the episomal replication origin site of virus SV40. Therefore, this plasmid is particularly suitable for the expression of proteins in cells expressing the large T antigen of the virus SV40, such as kidney epithelial BOSC cells (Sambrook, J. et al.., Molecular Cloning, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, 1989). The molecules Alphabet- 1 and Alphabet-RTKR subcloned in pcDNA3 can be then produced by transient transfection in BOSC cells. For transfection, 10" cells per 100 mm diameter plate are seeded at day 0 in 90% Dulbecco's Modified Eagle Medium (DMEM)-10% bovine calf serum (10 ml/plate). At day 1, the cells are transfected with 10 μg/plate of pcDNA3- Alphabet- 1 (or pcDN A3 -Alphabet-RTKR) by lipofection, according to the protocol provided by the lipofectin producer (Gibco-BRL). At day 2, the DNA-containing medium is replaced by fresh medium. At day 4 (48 hours after the end of the transfection), the medium is collected, cleared by centrifugation, and analysed for its content in Alphabet- 1 or Alphabet-RTKR. This analysis can be carried out in different ways. For example, the recombinant protein can be metabolically labelled incubating the 22 transfected cells with medium containing 35s_Methionine (0.25 mCi/ml). The thus labelled protein can then be partially purified by adsorption on Sepharose-heparin beads and detected by autoradiography after electrophoresis on polyacrylamide gel (Fig. 5 and 6). In example shown in figure 5, 10^ BOSC cells transfected respectively with pcDNA3-HGF (control) and pcDNA3-Alphabet-l were incubated at day 2 for 24 h in 4 ml of DMEM-Cys"-Met" in the presence of 0.25 mCi/ ml of 35 SMet+Cys (Promix, Amersham) and 10% FCS (Sigma). 3.5 ml of supernatant (cleared by centrifugation, buffered in 25 mM HEPES and added with protease inhibitors cocktail) were incubated for 4 hours at 4°C in the presence of 500 mM NaCl with 50 μl of Sepharose-heparin beads (Pierce). Then the beads were washed with suitable buffer (500 mM NaCl; 20 mM HEPES pH 7.4; 0.1% Triton X- 100; 10% glycerol) and heated for 2 minutes at 90°C in 50 μl of Laemmli buffer in the presence of 2-mercaptoethanol. The thus eluted proteins were separated by SDS-PAGE on a 10% polyacrylamide gel and analysed by autoradiography. As clearly seen in the figure, Alphabet- 1 is mainly secreted as uncleaved precursor, notwithstanding the presence of foetal serum in high concentration (10%) in the medium. In the example shown in figure 6, 10^ BOSC cells transfected respectively with pcDNA3 -Alphabet- 1 (control) and pcDNA3- Alphabet- RTKR were incubated from day 2 for 24h in 4ml of DMEM-Cys"-Mef in the presence of 0.25 mCi/ ml of 35sMet+Cys (Promix, Amersham) and 2% FCS (Sigma). 3.5 ml of supernatant (cleared by centrifugation, buffered in 25 mM HEPES and added with protease inhibitors cocktail) 23 were incubated for 4 hours at 4°C in the presence of 500 mM NaCl with 50 μl of Sepharose-heparin beads (Pierce). Then the beads were washed with suitable buffer (500 mM NaCl; 20 mM HEPES pH 7,4; 0.1% Triton X-100; 10% glycerol) and heated for 2 minutes at 90°C in 50 μl of Laemmli buffer in the presence of 2-mercaptoethanol. The thus eluted proteins were separated by SDS-PAGE on a 10% poliacrylamide gel and analyzed by autoradiography. As evidenced in the figure, notwithstanding the low concentration of foetal serum (2%) in the medium, the Pro- Alphabet-RTKR precursor is cleaved to give the mature form, contrary to Alphabet- 1 which is present only as precursor. The adsorption procedure on Sepharose-heparin beads can be used also for the first purification of the recombinant protein. The molecule can be further purified using poly-histidine affinity to heavy metals such as nickel. The protein containing poly-histidine tag can be adsorbed on a nickel resin column (Invitrogen) and subsequently eluted with imidazole (the detailed protocol is provided by the manufacturer). In the following sequence listing: SEQ. ID. NO. 1 : Alphabet- 1 DNA coding sequence; SEQ. ID. NO. 2: Alphabet-1 amino acid sequence; SEQ. ID. NO. 3: Alphabet-RTKR DNA coding sequence; SEQ. ID. NO. 4: Alphabet-RTKR amino acid sequence.

Claims: 24 CLAIMS 1. Recombinant proteins comprising two superdomains, one of which is obtained combining HL and K1-K4 domains of HGF and MSP α chains, the other corresponds to HGF or MSP β chain, said super-domains being separated by a linker which optionally contains a proteolytic cleavage site. 2. Recombinant proteins as claimed in claim 1, of general formula (I): [A] - B - [C] - (D) y (I) in which [A] corresponds to the sequence (LS) m -HL-Kl-(K2) n -(K3) 0 -(K4) p wherein (the numbering of the following amino acids being referred to the HGF and MSP sequences _as reported in Fig. 1 and 2, respectively): LS is an amino acid sequence corresponding to residues 1-31 of HGF or 1-18 of MSP; HL is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of HGF starting between residues 32-70 and ending between residues 96-127; or it is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of MSP starting between residues 19-56 and ending between residues 78-109; Kl is an amino acid sequence derived from the chain of HGF starting between residues 97-128 and ending between residues 201-205; or it is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of MSP starting between residues 79-110 and ending between residues 186-190; K2 is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of HGF starting between residues 202-206 and ending between residues 283-299; or it is 25 an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of MSP starting between residues 187-191 and ending between residues 268-282; K3 is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of HGF starting between residues 284-300 and ending between residues 378-385; or it is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of MSP starting between residues 269-283 and ending between residues 361-369; K4 is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of HGF starting between residues 379-386 and ending between residues 464-487; or it is an amino acid sequence derived from the α chain of MSP starting between residues 362-370 and ending between residues 448-481 ; m, n, o, p is 0 or 1 ; the sum n + o + p is an integer from 1 to 3 or 0, with the proviso that n > o > p; B is selected from the sequence 488-491 of HGF, the sequence 478-489 of MSP, a consensus sequence for protease or an uncleavable sequence; [C] is the sequence of HGF β chain starting between amino acid residues 490 to 492 and ending at residue 723; or it is the sequence of MSP β chain starting between amino acid residues 484 to 486 and ending at residue 711 ; with the proviso that, when [A] coincides with HGF or MSP α chain, [C] corresponds to MSP and HGF β chain, respectively; D is the sequence W-Z, wherein W is a conventional proteolytic site, Z any sequence useful for the purification of the protein on nickel or affinity columns; y is 0 or 1. 3. Recombinant proteins according to claims 1-2, in which the HL domain is the sequence of HGF α chain ranging from amino acids 32 to 26 127, or the sequence of MPS α chain ranging from amino acids 19 to 98; the Kl domain is the sequence of HGF α chain ranging from amino acids 128 to 203, or the sequence of MPS α chain ranging from amino acids 99 to 188; the K2 domain is the sequence of HGF α chain ranging from amino acids 204 to 294, or the sequence of MPS α chain ranging from amino acids 189 to 274; the K3 domain is the sequence of HGF α chain ranging from amino acids 286 to 383, or the sequence of MPS chain ranging from amino acids 275 and 367; the K4 domain is the sequence of HGF α chain ranging from amino acids 384 to 487, or the sequence of MPS α chain ranging from amino acids 368 and 477; C is the sequence 492-723 of HGF β chain, or the sequence 486-711 of MSP β chain. 4. Recombinant proteins according to claims 1-3 of formula (II): LS „ 0F - HL „ O F- K1 HOF - K2 „ 0 F--- K3 „ 0F - K4 „ 0F - B „ GF -CP MSP -D π wherein LS HGF -HL HGF -Kl HGF -K2 HGF -K3 HGF -K4 HGF is the se^qu--e,- . n-.-c^e 1-4 - r 8-,7 of HGF, BjjGF i s the sequence LLRVV, Cβ is the sequence 486-711 of MSP, D is the sequence GNSAVD(H)6- 5. Recombinant proteins according to claims 1 - 3 of formula (III): LS HGF -HL HGF -K^ GF -^ HGF -^ HGF -^ HGF -BF-Cβ^ p -D III wherein LS HGF HL HGF -K^ GF -^ HGF -^ HGF -^ HGF is the sequence 1-487 of HGF, B F is the sequence RTKR-LRVV, Cβ Mgp is the sequence 486-711 of MSP, D is the sequence GNSAVD(H)6- 6. Nucleotide sequences encoding for the recombinant proteins of claims 1-5. 7. Expression vectors comprising the nucleotide sequences of claim 6. 8. Prokaryotic or eukaryotic host cell transformed with an expression 27 vector of claim 7. 9. Process for preparing the recombinant proteins of claims 1-5, which comprises the following steps: a) construction of DNA encoding the desired protein; b) insertion of DNA in an expression vector; c) transformation of a host cell with recombinant DNA (rDNA); d) culture of the transformed host cell so as to express the recombinant protein; e) extraction and purification of the produced recombinant protein. 10. Process according to claim 9, wherein the transformation is a transient transformation and the host cell is kidney epithelial BOSC cell. 11. Recombinant proteins of claims 1-5 for use as therapeutical agents. 12. Use of the recombinant proteins of claims 1-5 in the manufacture of a medicament for the prevention or treatment of chemotherapeutic- induced toxicity. 13. Use according to claim 10, wherein the chemotherapeutic-induced toxicity is myelotoxicity, hepatotoxicity, nefrotoxicity, mucotoxicity and neurotoxicity. 14. Pharmaceutical compositions containing an effective amount of the recombinant proteins of claims 1-5, together with pharmacologically acceptable excipients.

Inventors: CASELLI GIANFRANCO, COLLESI CHIARA, COMOGLIO PAOLO, MEDICO ENZO, MICHIELI PAOLO, CASELLI, GIANFRANCO, COLLESI, CHIARA, COMOGLIO, PAOLO, MEDICO, ENZO, MICHIELI, PAOLO
Applicants: CASELLI GIANFRANCO, COLLESI CHIARA, COMOGLIO PAOLO, DOMPE SPA, MEDICO ENZO, MICHIELI PAOLO, CASELLI, GIANFRANCO, COLLESI, CHIARA, COMOGLIO, PAOLO, DOMPE' S.P.A., MEDICO, ENZO, MICHIELI, PAOLO
Application year: 1999
Main classification: C12N15
IPC codes: A61K38, C07K14, C12N15