Purification of a Proteolytic Enzyme From Rabbit Acrosomes1

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Abstract
A proteolytic enzyme assigned the name acrosin was purified 250-fold from the acrosomes of epididymal rabbit spermatozoa by DEAE and Sephadex chromatography. The acrosin preparations were of high purity as judged by the specific activity of 15 and since SDS gel electrophoresis showed only one major component. In the purified form acrosin is unstable above pH 6 even at low temperatures, but stable if lyophilized. The molecular weight of acrosin was estimated to be 55,000 by Sephadex chromatography. The enzyme most likely exists as a dimer since treatment with SDS and mercaptoethanol and subsequent molecular weight determination by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis gave a subunit of molecular weight 27,300.

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