The neuroendocrine protein 7B2 acts as a molecular chaperone in the in vitro folding of human insulin-like growth factor-1 secreted from yeast.

The neuroendocrine protein 7B2 prevents premature activation of PC2, an enzyme involved in the processing of prohormones in the secretory pathway. We inquired if this chaperone-like function encompasses a broader role for 7B2 in the folding of hormone-like proteins. As a test, the fate of misfolded human insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF1) was assessed, in the presence and absence of 7B2. Most of the recombinant IGF1 molecules, secreted from yeast, are a conglomeration of inactive multimers which are either disulfide-linked or mere physical aggregates. We find that yeast-produced 7B2 influences the in vitro conversion of inactive molecules into active monomers. However, the amounts of disulfide-linked dimers remain unaffected during this conversion. Interestingly, both 7B2 and the molecular chaperone DnaK interact with IGF1 in the yeast two-hybrid system. Like DnaK, 7B2 also binds the tumor suppressor protein p53. Binding of DnaK to exposed epitopes of aggregated proteins is known to be a prerequisite for deaggregation. It is conceivable that 7B2 participates in an analogous manner in the dissociation of non-covalently linked multimers of IGF1. Our results indicate that 7B2 might find an application in the deaggregation of potentially useful therapeutic proteins.