Expression and enzymatic characterization of a cold-adapted β-agarase from Antarctic bacterium Pseudoalteromonas sp.NJ21

An agar-degrading bacterium, designated as Pseudoalteromonas sp. NJ21, was isolated from an Antarctic sediment sample. The agarase gene aga1161 from Pseudoalteromonas sp. NJ21 consisting of a 2 382-bp coding region was cloned. The gene encodes a 793-amino acids protein and was found to possess characteristic features of the Glyco_hydro 42 family. The recombinant agarase （rAgal 161） was overexpressed in Escherichia coli and purified as a fusion protein. Enzyme activity analysis revealed that the optimum temperature and pH for the purified recombinant agarase were 30--40℃ and 8.0, respectively. rAga 1161 was found to maintain as much as 80% of its maximum activity at 10℃, which is typical of a cold- adapted enzyme. The pattern of agar hydrolysis demonstrated that the enzyme is an β-agarase, producing neoagarobiose （NA2） as the final main product. Furthermore, this work is the first proof of an agarolytic activity in Antarctic bacteria and these results indicate the potential for the Antarctic agarase as a catalyst in medicine, food and cosmetic industries.

Isolation and Characterization of Two Novel Gene Encoded Alkaline Esterases from an Alkaline Soil Metagenomic Library

The development of industrial biotechnology has created an increasing demand for alkaline lipolytic enzymes with functional diversity. In this study, an alkaline soil metagenomic library was constructed to search for new lipolytic enzymes. Two novel gene encoded alkaline esterases（designated as estA and estB） were isolated by functional screening from the library. The estA gene consisted of 834 bp and coded for 277 amino acids with a molecular mass of 29998. Amino acid sequence homology analysis indicates that EstA belongs to α/β hydrolase fold family 4.4（abH4.4）, with EstA being the smallest member of that family yet reported. The estB gene consisted of 1185 bp and encoded 394 amino acids with a theoretical molecular mass of 40090. Its conserved domain analysis shows that EstB belongs to the GDSL hydrolase superfamily. Both EstA and EstB exhibit only moderate identity（〈38%） in amino acid sequence to the known lipolytic enzyme genes in the database. The two genes were respectively expressed in Escherichia coli and the protein products were purified for functional characterization. While the expressed EstA did not exhibit the functional properties that were superior to those of other esterases previously reported, the EstB was stable at temperature up to 45 ℃ and its maximum activity was measured to be 53.6 U/mg at pH=10. Both the en- zymes have further enriched the diversity of the lipolytic enzymes database and also appear to be promising biocatalysts for potential biotechnological application.

Purification and characterization of iron-cofactored superoxide dismutase from Enteromorpha linza

A superoxide dismutase was purified from Enteromorpha linza using a simple and safe procedure, which comprised phosphate buffer extraction, ammonium sulphate precipitation, ion exchange chromatography on Q-sepharose column, and gel filtration chromatography on Superdex 200 10/300GL. The E. linza superoxide dismutase （E/SOD） was purified 103.6-fold, and a yield of 19.1% and a specific activity of 1 750 U/rag protein were obtained. The SDS-PAGE exhibited E/SOD a single band near 23 kDa and the gel filtration study showed E/SOD＇s molecular weight is near 46 kDa in nondenatured condition, indicating it＇s a homodimeric protein. E/SOD is an iron-cofactored superoxide dismutase （Fe-SOD） because it was inhibited by hydrogen peroxide, insensitive to potassium cyanide. The optimal temperature for its maximal enzyme activity was 35℃, and it still had 29.8% relative activity at 0℃, then E/SOD can be classified as a cold-adapted enzyme. E/SOD was stable when temperature was below 40℃ or the pH was within the range of 5 10. The first 11 N-terminal amino acids orE/SOD were ALELKAPPYEL, comparison of its N-terminal sequence with other Fe-SOD N-terminal sequences at the same position suggests it is possibly a chloroplastic Fe-SOD.

Properties of Alkaline Protease Produced by Strain Ⅰ13

[Objective] This study aimed to investigating properties of alkaline protease produced by strain Ⅰ 13.[Method] Crude enzyme of alkaline protease was obtained from alkaline protease produced by strain I 13,while effects of temperature and pH value on enzyme activity were also investigated in this study.[Result] The optimal temperature of alkaline protease produced by strain Ⅰ 13 was 40 ℃,while enzyme activity maintains a higher level from 30 to 60 ℃ and over 40% of the largest enzyme activity still maintained within the range from 20 to 30 ℃.The optimal pH value was 10.5,and over 90% of the largest enzyme activity still maintained within the range from 8.0 to 11.0,which had broader pH value spectrum.[Conclusion] This alkaline protease has huge potential to be developed into washing-powder additive.

Screening, purification, and characterization of an extracellular lipase from Aureobasidium pullulans isolated from stuffed buns steamers

An extracellular lipase from Aureobasidium pullulans was obtained and purified with a specific activity of 17.7 U/mg of protein using ultrafiltration and a DEAE-Sepharose Fast Flow column. Characterization of the lipase indicated that it is a novel finding from the species A. pullulans. The molecular weight of the lipase was 39.5 kDa, determined by sodium dodecyl sulfonate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis(SDS-PAGE). The enzyme exhibited its optimum activity at 40 °C and pH of 7. It also showed a remarkable stability in some organic solutions(30%, v/v) including n-propanol, isopropanol, dimethyl sulfoxide(DMSO), and hexane. The catalytic activity of the lipase was enhanced by Ca2+ and was slightly inhibited by Mn2+ and Zn2+ at a concentration of 10 mmol/L. The lipase was activated by the anionic surfactant SDS and the non-ionic surfactants Tween 20, Tween 80, and Triton X-100, but it was drastically inhibited by the cationic surfactant cetyl trimethyl ammonium bromide(CTAB). Furthermore, the lipase was able to hydrolyze a wide variety of edible oils, such as peanut oil, corn oil, sunflower seed oil, sesame oil, and olive oil. Our study indicated that the lipase we obtained is a potential biocatalyst for industrial use.