Yajie Gao

Novel low-temperature-active, salt-tolerant and proteases-resistant endo-1,4-β-mannanase from a new Sphingomonas strain.

Sphingomonas sp. JB13, isolated from slag of a >20-year-old phosphate rock-stacking site, showed the highest 16S rDNA (1343bp) identity of 97.2% with Sphingomonas sp. ERB1-3 (FJ948169) and <97% identities with other identified Sphingomonas strains. A mannanase-coding gene (1191bp) was cloned and encodes a 396-residue polypeptide (ManAJB13) showing the highest amino acid sequence identities of 56.2% with the putative glycosyl hydrolase (GH) family 26 endo-1,4-β-mannanase from Rhodothermus marinus (YP_004824245), and 44.2% with the identified GH 26 endo-1,4-β-mannanase from Cellvibrio japonicus (2VX5_A). The recombinant ManAJB13 (rManAJB13) was expressed in Escherichia coli BL21 (DE3). Purified rManAJB13 displayed the typical characteristics of low-temperature-active enzymes: showing apparent optimal at 40°C, ~55% of the maximum activity at 20°C and ~20% at 10°C, and thermolability at 45°C (~15min half-life). The potential mechanism for low-temperature-activity of GH 26 endo-1,4-β-mannanases might be ascribed to the more hydrophobic residues (AILFWV) and less polar residues (NCQSTY) compared with typical thermophilic and mesophilic counterparts. The purified rManAJB13 exhibited >85% mannanase activity at the concentration of 0-4.0M NaCl. No loss of enzyme activity was observed after incubating the enzyme with 1M or 2M NaCl, or trypsin or proteinase K at 37°C and pH 6.5 for 1h. The K(m), V(max) and k(cat) values were 5.0mgml(-1), 277.8μmol min(-1)mg(-1), and 211.9s(-1), respectively, using locust bean gum as the substrate.

Characterization of a novel low-temperature-active, alkaline and sucrose-tolerant invertase

A glycoside hydrolase family 32 invertase from Bacillus sp. HJ14 was expressed in Escherichia coli. The purified recombinant enzyme (rInvHJ14) showed typical biochemical properties of low-temperature-active and alkaline enzymes: (i) rInvHJ14 was active and stable in the range of pH 7.0–9.5 with an apparent pH optimum of 8.0; (ii) rInvHJ14 was most active but not stable at 30–32.5 °C, with 19.7, 48.2 and 82.1% of its maximum activity when assayed at 0, 10 and 20 °C, respectively, and the Ea, ΔG* (30 °C), Km (30 °C) and kcat (30 °C) values for hydrolysis of sucrose by rInvHJ14 was 47.6 kJ mol−1, 57.6 kJ mol−1, 62.9 mM and 746.2 s−1, respectively. The enzyme also showed strong sucrose tolerance. rInvHJ14 preserved approximately 50% of its highest activity in the presence of 2045.0 mM sucrose. Furthermore, potential factors for low-temperature-active and alkaline adaptations of rInvHJ14 were presumed. Compared with more thermostable homologs, rInvHJ14 has a higher frequency of glycine residues and a longer loop but a lower frequency of proline residues (especially in a loop) in the catalytic domain. The catalytic pockets of acid invertases were almost negatively charged while that of alkaline rInvHJ14 was mostly positively charged.

Characterization of a family 3 polysaccharide lyase with broad temperature adaptability, thermo-alkali stability, and ethanol tolerance

The 774-bp pectate lyase gene plyAI4 from Bacillus sp. I4 was cloned and expressed in E. coli. The gene encodes a 257-residue polypeptide (PlyAI4, 28.3 kDa) with the highest identities of 97.3% with a putative pectate lyase from Bacillus subtilis BSn5 (ADV94306) and 60.3% with an identified pectate lyase of the polysaccharide lyase family (PL) 3 from Paenibacillus amylolyticus 27C64 (ADB78774). The purified recombinant PlyAI4 (rPlyAI4) exhibited apparently optimal activity at pH 10.5 ∼ 11.0 and 50°C. Compared with the majority of reported alkaline pectate lyases, rPlyAI4 exhibited more residual enzyme activity at 20°C (∼45%) or at 70°C (∼50%) and better thermostability at 70°C (∼60 min half-life at 70°C). In the presence of 20% (v/v) ethanol, pectate lyase activity was enhanced by 0.2 fold. After incubation in 40% (v/v) ethanol at 37°C and pH 8.5 for 1 h, the purified rPelAI4 retained more than 75% of the initial activity. Sequence analysis proposed a new signature block, A-D-G-[V/I]-H, for PL 3 pectate lyases. These properties may prove to be important with regards to PlyAI4 for basic research and industrial application.