Plants synthesize a variety of molecules, including proteinaceous proteinase inhibitors, to defend themselves of being attacked by insects. In this work, a novel trypsin inhibitor (PPTI) was purified from the seeds of the native Brazilian tree Poecilanthe parviflora (Benth) (Papilioinodeae, Leguminosae) by gel filtration chromatography on a Sephadex G-100 followed by Superdex G75 chromatography (FPLC), Sepharose 4B-Trypsin column, and fractionated by reversed-phase HPLC on a C-18 column. SDS-PAGE showed that PPTI consisted of a single polypeptide chain with molecular mass of about 16 kDa. The dissociation constant of 1.0 x 10(-7) M was obtained with bovine trypsin. PPTI was stable over a wide range of temperature and pH and in the presence of DTT. The N-terminal sequence of the PPTI showed a high degree of homology with other Kunitz-type inhibitors. Trypsin-like activity in midguts of larval Diatraea saccharalis, Anagasta kuehniella, Spodoptera frugiperda, and Corcyra cephalonica were substantially inhibited by PPTI.235343350