Covalent structure of collagen: amino acid sequence of .alpha.1(III)-CB5 from type III collagen of human liver

Type III collagen was prepared from human liver by limited pepsin digestion, differential salt precipitation, and carboxymethylcellulose chromatography. Ten distinct peptides were obtained by cyanogen bromide digestion. The peptide alpha 1 (III)-CB5 was further purified by carboxymethylcellulose chromatography, and its amino acid sequence was determined. Automatic Edman degradation of intact alpha 1 (III)-CB5, tryptic and thermolytic peptides, and hydroxylamine-derived fragments was used to establish the total sequence. The mammalian collagenase site contained in the alpha 1 (III)-CB5 sequence was ascertained by digestion of native type III collagen with purified rheumatoid synovial collagenase. Collagenase cleavage occurred at a single Gly--Ile bond, one triplet before the corresponding specific cleavage site of type I collagen. The present work brings the known sequence of human liver type III collagen to include alpha 1 (III)-CB3-7-6-1-8-10-2-4-5. These correspond to the homologous region of alpha 1 (I)-CB0-1-2-4-5-8-3-7 residues 11--804.