Khin Lay Kyu

Paenibacillus curdlanolyticus Strain B-6 Xylanolytic-Cellulolytic Enzyme System That Degrades Insoluble Polysaccharides

ABSTRACT A facultatively anaerobic bacterium, Paenibacillus curdlanolyticus B-6, isolated from an anaerobic digester produces an extracellular xylanolytic-cellulolytic enzyme system containing xylanase, β-xylosidase, arabinofuranosidase, acetyl esterase, mannanase, carboxymethyl cellulase (CMCase), avicelase, cellobiohydrolase, β-glucosidase, amylase, and chitinase when grown on xylan under aerobic conditions. During growth on xylan, the bacterial cells were found to adhere to xylan from the early exponential growth phase to the late stationary growth phase. Scanning electron microscopic analysis revealed the adhesion of cells to xylan. The crude enzyme preparation was found to be capable of binding to insoluble xylan and Avicel. The xylanolytic-cellulolytic enzyme system efficiently hydrolyzed insoluble xylan, Avicel, and corn hulls to soluble sugars that were exclusively xylose and glucose. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) of a crude enzyme preparation exhibited at least 17 proteins, and zymograms revealed multiple xylanases and cellulases containing 12 xylanases and 9 CMCases. The cellulose-binding proteins, which are mainly in a multienzyme complex, were isolated from the crude enzyme preparation by affinity purification on cellulose. This showed nine proteins by SDS-PAGE and eight xylanases and six CMCases on zymograms. Sephacryl S-300 gel filtration showed that the cellulose-binding proteins consisted of two multienzyme complexes with molecular masses of 1,450 and 400 kDa. The results indicated that the xylanolytic-cellulolytic enzyme system of this bacterium exists as multienzyme complexes.

Purification and characterization of two cellulase free xylanases from an alkaliphilic Bacillus firmus

Two xylanases from Bacillus firmus were purified to homogeneity by gel filtration and ion-exchange chromatography. These enzymes have molecular weights of 45 kDa and 23 kDa, respectively, and both show enzymatic activity over the pH range of 5.0–11.0 at 37°C. These enzymes hydrolyzed xylan from birchwood to release mainly the products of xylose, xylotriose and xylohexose, thus indicating that the xylanases act preferentially toward the internal glycosidic bonds of xylo-oligosaccharides. However, the two xylanases show different modes of action, and a combination of both is likely to lead to concerted degradation of xylan down to the mono- and disaccharides.

Isolation and properties of a cellulosome-type multienzyme complex of the thermophilic Bacteroides sp. strain P-1.

The extracellular form of cellulosome-type multienzyme complex of thermophilic Bacteroides sp. strain P-1 which was isolated from the anaerobic digester, is described. Multienzyme complex was isolated from the culture supernatant by an adsorption-desorption affinity chromatography on microcrystalline cellulose. The isolated multienzyme complex was found to form a complex that exhibited a high molecular weight (estimated at more than 1400 kDa) and was quite stable, requiring strong denaturing condition for dissociation. Polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence of sodium dodecyl sulphate resolved multienzyme complex into at least 12 subunits with the molecular weight range of 49 to 209 kDa, respectively. The isolated multienzyme complex showed cellulose-binding ability, cellulase and xylanase activities and effected the hydrolysis of crystalline cellulose and lignocellulosic materials in the form of corncob, corn hull, rice straw, and sugarcane bagasse.

Isolation and characterization of a multienzyme complex (cellulosome) of the Paenibacillus curdlanolyticus B-6 grown on Avicel under aerobic conditions

A multienzyme complex, cellulosome, of the facultatively anaerobic bacterium, Paenibacillus curdlanolyticus B-6 was produced on microcrystalline cellulose (Avicel) under aerobic conditions. During growth on Avicel, the bacterial cells were found to be capable of adhesion to Avicel by scanning electron microscopic (SEM) analysis. The multienzyme complex of P. curdlanolyticus B-6 was isolated from the crude enzyme preparation by gel filtration chromatography on Sephacryl S-300 and affinity purification on cellulose. The isolated multienzyme complex was able to bind to both Avicel and insoluble xylan and consists of cellulolytic and xylanolytic enzymes such as avicelase, carboxymethyl cellulase (CMCase), cellobiohydrolase, beta-glucosidase, xylanase, beta-xylosidase and alpha-l-arabinofuranosidase. The molecular mass of the complex was estimated to be 1600 kDa. It composed of at least 12 proteins on SDS-PAGE and 10 CMCases and 11 xylanases on zymograms. The isolated multienzyme complex could degrade the raw lignocellulosic substances effectively.

Present and potential applications of cellulases in agriculture, biotechnology, and bioenergy

Cellulase (CEL) presently constitutes a major group of industrial enzyme based on its diverse ranges of utilization. Apart from such current and well-established applications—as in cotton processing, paper recycling, detergent formulation, juice extraction, and animal feed additives—their uses in agricultural biotechnology and bioenergy have been exploited. Supplementation of CELs to accelerate decomposition of plant residues in soil results in improved soil fertility. So far, applying CELs/antagonistic cellulolytic fungi to crops has shown to promote plant growth performance, including enhanced seed germination and protective effects. Their actions are believed mainly to trigger plant defense mechanisms and/or to act as biocontrol agents that mediate disease suppression. However, the exact interaction between the enzymes/fungi and plants has not been clearly elucidated. Under mild conditions, removal of plant cell wall polysaccharides by CELs for protoplast preparation results in reduced protoplast damage and increased viability and yields. CELs have recently shown great potential in enzyme aid extraction of bioactive compounds from plant materials before selective extraction through enhancing release of target molecules, especially those associated with the wall matrix. To date, attempts have been made to formulate CEL preparation for cellulosic-based bioethanol production. The high cost of CELs has created a bottleneck, resulting in an uneconomic production process. The utilization of low-cost carbohydrates, strain improvement, and gene manipulations has been alternatively aimed at reducing the cost of CEL production. In this review, we focus on and discuss current knowledge of CELs and their applications in agriculture, biotechnology, and bioenergy.

An efficient treatment for detoxification process of cassava starch by plant cell wall-degrading enzymes

The objective of this work was to remove linamarin in starch from cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz cv. KU-50) roots, a high-cyanogen variety by using plant cell wall-degrading enzymes, xylanase and cellulase. The combination of xylanase from Bacillus firmus K-1 and xylanase and cellulase from Paenibacillus curdlanolyticus B-6 at the ratio of 1:9 showed the maximum synergism at 1.8 times for hydrolyzing cassava cortex cell walls and releasing linamarase. Combined enzyme treatment enhanced linamarin liberation from the parenchyma by 90%. In addition, when the combined enzymes were applied for detoxification during cassava starch production, a low-cyanide-product was obtained with decreased linamarin concentration (96%) compared to non-enzyme treated tissues. Based on these results, xylanase and cellulase treatment is a good method for low-cyanide-cassava starch production and could be applied for detoxification of cassava products during processing.

Isolation and characterization of a new cellulosome-producing Clostridium thermocellum strain.

The anaerobic thermophilic bacterium, Clostridium thermocellum, is a potent cellulolytic microorganism that produces large extracellular multienzyme complexes called cellulosomes. To isolate C.thermocellum organisms that possess effective cellulose-degrading ability, new thermophilic cellulolytic strains were screened from more than 800 samples obtained mainly from agriculture residues in Thailand using microcrystalline cellulose as a carbon source. A new strain, C. thermocellum S14, having high cellulose-degrading ability was isolated from bagasse paper sludge. Cellulosomes prepared from S14 demonstrated faster degradation of microcrystalline cellulose, and 3.4- and 5.6-fold greater Avicelase activity than those from C. thermocellum ATCC27405 and JW20 (ATCC31449), respectively. Scanning electron microscopic analysis showed that S14 had unique cell surface features with few protuberances in contrast to the type strains. In addition, the cellulosome of S14 was resistant to inhibition by cellobiose that is a major end product of cellulose hydrolysis. Saccharification tests conducted using rice straw soaked with sodium hydroxide indicated the cellulosome of S14 released approximately 1.5-fold more total sugars compared to that of ATCC27405. This newly isolated S14 strain has the potential as an enzyme resource for effective lignocellulose degradation.

Effect of Carbon Sources on the Induction of Xylanolytic-Cellulolytic Multienzyme Complexes in Paenibacillus curdlanolyticus Strain B-6

The effect of polymeric substances such as α-cellulose, birchwood xylan, corn hull, and sugarcane bagasse, and of soluble sugars such as L-arabinose, D-galactose, D-glucose, D-xylose, and cellobiose, on the induction of multienzyme complexes in a facultatively anaerobic bacterium, Paenibacillus curdlanolyticus B-6, was investigated under aerobic conditions. Cells and culture supernatants of strain B-6 grown on different carbon sources were analyzed. Cells grown on each carbon source adhered to cellulose. Hence strain B-6 cells from all carbon sources must have an essential component responsible for anchoring the cells to the substrate surfaces. Native–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (native–PAGE), sodium dodecyl sulphate–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS–PAGE), zymogram analysis, and enzymatic assays indicated that many proteins having xylanolytic and cellulolytic activities from P. curdlanolyticus B-6 grown on each carbon source were produced as two multienzyme complexes in the culture supernatants. These results indicate that P. curdlanolyticus B-6 produced multienzyme complexes when grown on both polymeric and soluble sugars. The multienzyme complexes of P. curdlanolyticus B-6 consisted of the main enzymes and non-enzymatic subunits and the production of some different subunits, depending on the carbon source.

Improved Purity and Immunostimulatory Activity of β-(1→3)(1→6)-Glucan from Pleurotus sajor-caju Using Cell Wall-Degrading Enzymes

The objective of this work was to improve the purity of β-(1→3)(1→6)-glucan in the native triple helical structure from the fruiting bodies of Pleurotus sajor-caju for effective biological function using cell wall-degrading enzymes. A crude carbohydrate was extracted with hot water, then treated with crude xylanase and cellulase from Paenibacillus curdlanolyticus B-6. β-Glucan in the extract was purified to homogeneity with a single and symmetrical peak using 650M DEAE Toyopearl and Sepharose CL-6B column chromatography. The purity of β-glucan was confirmed by high-performance size-exclusion chromatography. Purified β-glucan was obtained at a purity of up to 90.2%. The Congo red reaction and atomic force microscopy indicated that the purified β-glucan exhibited a triple helix conformation. Purified β-glucan was able to effectively up-regulate the functions of macrophages such as nitric oxide (NO) and tumor necrosis factor (TNF-α) production.

Substrate-Binding Site of Family 11 Xylanase from Bacillus firmus K-1 by Molecular Docking

The three-dimensional structure (3D structure) of Xyn11A, a family 11 xylanase from Bacillus firmus K-1, was obtained through homology modeling. To study the substrate-binding site of Xyn11A, six xylooligosaccharides, xylobiose to xyloheptaose (X2–X7), were docked into the active site of Xyn11A by molecular docking. Based on the docked energy and estimated free energy of binding combined with modeled enzyme-substrate complexes, the substrate-binding site of Xyn11A probably contained six subsites, defined as −3, −2, −1, +1, +2, and +3. Focus on possible stacking interaction presented seven aromatic residues, that played an important role in six subsites of Xyn11A such as Tyr165 (−3), Trp9 and Tyr69 (−2), Tyr80 (−1), Tyr65 (+1), Tyr88 (+2) and Tyr173 (+3). The bond-cleavage positions showed that X2 and X3 did not bind at the cleft (subsites −1 and +1) of Xyn11A. Related to the experiment, the end products of larchwood xylan hydrolysis by purified Xyn11A were X2 and X3. X2 and X3 acted as the end product inhibitors of Xyn11A.