Changes at the N-terminus of human brain creatine kinase during a transition between inactive folding intermediate and active enzyme

CK-STAR, a monoclonal antibody against human brain creatine kinase (CK), can be shown by chemical cleavage mapping and peptide synthesis to recognize an epitope at the free N-terminus of the enzyme. The epitope could be largely reproduced by a synthetic peptide based on the first 18 amino acids and could be partly formed by the first 11 amino acids. The antibody did not bind to native CK, but it did bind to CK in various partially denatured forms and to an enzymically inactive intermediate in the refolding process. Competitive binding studies have shown that the N-terminal conformations of both the refolding intermediate and the free peptide resemble that of CK partially denatured by attachment to plastic. The results suggest that the final stages of CK refolding and reactivation involve a structural change at the N-terminus or its interaction with some other part of the CK molecule, thus masking the CK-STAR epitope.