ISOLATION OF HUMAN INTESTINAL DEFENSINS FROM ILEAL NEOBLADDER URINE

We describe the isolation of naturally occurring human intestinal defe nsins HD-5 and HD-6 from ileal neobladder urine and ileal mucosa, Usin g an antibody-based detection assay, we found multiple N-terminally pr ocessed forms of HD-5. The predominant HD-5 forms in tissue were longe r than these in neobladder urine (amino acid (aa) 23-94 and 29-94 vers us aa 36-94, 56-94 and 63-94) suggesting that Paneth cells store prode fensin that is processed to mature defensin during or after degranulat ion, Search for mature HD-6 yielded aa 69-100 as the predominant form in both sources. The ileal neobladder is a promising model to study hu man Paneth cell secretion. (C) 1998 Federation of European Biochemical Societies.