Purification and Characterization of β-Fructofuranosidase from Aspergillus japonicus TIT-KJ1

A β-fructofuranosidase (EC 3.2.1.26) was purified to homogeneity from Aspergillus japonicus TIT-KJ1. The enyme had an optimum pH for activity of 5.4 and pH stability at 7.0–8.4. The optimum temperature at pH 5.4 was 60°C. The enzyme had a molecular weight of 236,000 with two subunits and an isoelectric point of pH 4.0. The enzyme was inactivated by 5 mM Hg^{2 +} and Ag⁺. The enzyme had a high transfructosylating activity. Treatment of 50% (w/v) sucrose with the enzyme under optimum conditions afforded more than 55% fructooligosaccharides.     

Production of β-fructofuranosidase by Aspergillus japonicus in batch and fed-batch cultures

Summary A comparison of -fructofuranosidase (FFase, EC 3.2.l.26) production by Aspergillus japonicus TIT-90076 in batch and fed-batch cultures was investigated in shaken flasks. Results showed that fed-batch cultivation of A. japonicus using intermittent sucrose supply produced more FFase than batch culture, and the maximal enzyme production was 910 units ml^–1, which was about 20% higher than that in the batch cultures.     

Production of β-fructofuranosidase byAspergillus japonicus

A newly isolated strain, MU-2, which produces very high -fructofuranosidase activity, was identified asAspergillus japonicus. For enzyme production by the strain, sucrose at 20% (w/v) was the best carbon source and yeast extract at 1.5 to 3% (w/v) the best nitrogen source. Total enzymatic activity and cell growth were at maximum after 48 h, at 1.57×10⁴ U/flask and 0.81 g dry cells/flask, respectively. The optimum pH value of the enzymatic reaction was between 5.0 and 5.5 and the optimum temperature 60 to 65°C. The enzyme produced 1-kestose (O--d-fructofuranosyl-(21)--d-fructofuranosyl -d-glucopyranoside) and nystose (O--d-fructofuranosyl-(21)--d-fructofuranosyl-(21)--d-fructofuranosyl -d-glucopyranoside) from sucrose by fructosyl-transferring activity. The strain was found to be very useful for industrial production of -fructofuranosidase.     

Production of Aspergillus niger β-mannosidase in Pichia pastoris

β-Mannosidase (EC 3.2.1.25) is an exoglycosidase specific for the hydrolysis of terminal β-linked mannoside in various sugar chains. cDNA corresponding to the β-mannosidase gene was cloned from Aspergillus niger, sequenced, and expressed in the yeast Pichia pastoris. The β-mannosidase gene contains an open reading frame which encodes the protein with 933 amino acid residues. The wild type and recombinant proteins were purified to apparent homogeneity and biochemically characterized (K(M) 0.28 and 0.44mmol/l for p-nitrophenyl β-d-mannopyranoside, pI 4.2 and 4.0, and their pH optima were at pH 4.5 and 5.5 and 65°C, respectively).     

The Production of β-Fructofuranosidase from Bifidobacterium spp.

The productions of β-fructofuranosidase from Bifidohacterium longum A1, B. adolescentis G1, and four other strains of Bifidobacteria were investigated. All strains used in this study were grown in modified BL broth containing a mixture of fructooligosaccharides [1^F (1-β-D-fructofuranosyl)_n-1sucrose, GF_n (n = 2 – 5)] as the only carbon source. Hydrolyses of 1-kestose, sucrose, and inulin were detected in the extract of the cell. The highest activity on 1-kestose was detected in the extract of B. longum A1 followed by B. adolescentis G1. The other extracts weakly attacked 1-kestose. The relative activities of the extract of B. adolescentis G1 for 1-kestose, nystose, 1^F-fructosylnystose, sucrose, and inulin were 100, 82.5, 50.8, 28.3, and 15.0, respectively. The relative activities for various substrates differed from invertases (yeast β-fructofuranosidases) and exo-inulinase from Penicillium trzehinskii.     

Production of β-glucosidase by Aspergillus terreus

The production of -glucosidase by Aspergillus terreus was investigated in liquid shake cultures. Enzyme production was maximum on the 7th day of growth (2.18 U/ml) with the initial pH of the medium in the range of 4.0–5.5. Cellulose (Sigmacell Type 100) at 1.0% (wt/vol) gave maximum -glucosidase activity among the various soluble and insoluble carbon sources tested. Potassium nitrate was a suitable nitrogen source for enzyme production. Triton X-100 at 0.15% (vol/vol) increased the enzyme levels of A. terreus. The test fungal strain showed an ability to ferment glucose to ethanol.     

Properties of Aspergillus japonicus β-fructofuranosidase immobilized on porous silica

-Fructofuranosidase from Aspergillus japonicus MU-2, which produces fructo-oligosaccharides (1-kestose: O--D-fructofuranosyl-(2 1)--D-fructofuranosyl -D-glucopyranoside); and nystose: O--D-fructofuranosyl-(2 1)--D-fructofuranosyl-(2 1)--D-fructofuranosyl -D-glucopyranoside) from sucrose, was immobilized, covalently with glutaraldehyde onto alkylamine porous silica, at high efficiency (64%). Optimum pore diameter of porous silica for immobilization of the enzyme was 91.7 nm. After immobilization, the enzyme's stabilities to temperature, metal ions and proteolysis were improved, while its optimum pH and temperature were unchanged. The highest efficiency of continuous production of fructo-oligosaccharides (more than 60%), using a column packed with the immobilized enzyme, was obtained at 40% to 50% (w/v) sucrose. The half-life of the column during long-term continuous operation at 55°C was 29 days.     

Evaluation of GFP Tag as a Screening Reporter in Directed Evolution of a Hyperthermophilic β-Glucosidase

By applying a directed evolution methodology specific enzymatic characteristics can be enhanced, but to select mutants of interest from a large mutant bank, this approach requires high throughput screening and facile selection. To facilitate such primary screening of enhanced clones, an expression system was tested that uses a green fluorescent protein (GFP) tag from Aequorea victoria linked to the enzyme of interest. As GFP’s fluorescence is readily measured, and as there is a 1:1 molar correlation between the target protein and GFP, the concept proposed was to determine whether GFP could facilitate primary screening of error-prone PCR (EPP) clones. For this purpose a thermostable β-glucosidase (BglA) from Fervidobacterium sp. was used as a model enzyme. A vector expressing the chimeric protein BglA-GFP-6XHis was constructed and the fusion protein purified and characterized. When compared to the native proteins, the components of the fusion displayed modified characteristics, such as enhanced GFP thermostability and a higher BglA optimum temperature. Clones carrying mutant BglA proteins obtained by EPP, were screened based on the BglA/GFP activity ratio. Purified tagged enzymes from selected clones resulted in modified substrate specificity.     

Production and characterization of β-glucosidases from different Aspergillus strains

-D-Glucosidase enzymes (-D-glucoside glucohydrolase, EC 3.2.1.21) from different Aspergillus strains (Aspergillus phoenicis, A. niger and A. carbonarius) were examined with respect to the enzyme production of the different strains using different carbon sources and to the effect of the pH and temperature on the enzyme activity and stability. An efficient and rapid purification procedure was used for purifying the enzymes. Kinetic experiments were carried out using p-nitrophenyl -D-glucopyranoside (pNPG) and cellobiose as substrates. Two different fermentation methods were employed in which the carbon source was glucose or wheat bran. Aspergillus carbonarius proved to be the less effective strain in -glucosidase production. Aspergillus phoenicis produced the highest amount of -glucosidase on glucose as carbon source however on wheat bran A. niger was the best enzyme producer. Each Aspergillus strain produced one single acidic -glucosidase with pI values in the range of pH 3.52–4.2. There was no significant difference considering the effect of the pH and temperature on the activity and stability among the enzymes from different origins. The enzymes examined have only -glucosidase activity. The kinetic parameters showed that all enzymes hydrolysed pNPG with higher efficiency than cellobiose. This shows that hydrophobic interaction plays an important role in substrate binding. The kinetic parameters demonstrated that there was no significant difference among the enzymes from different origins in hydrolysing pNPG and cellobiose as the substrates.     

Induction of β-N-acetylhexosaminidase in Aspergillus oryzae

Summary Extracellular -N-acetylhexosaminidase in basic specific activity 1.5 U/mg protein was induced 15 – 35 times (up to 50 U/mg protein) by mixture of chitooligomers (crude chitin hydrolysate), 10 – 20 times (20 – 30 U/mg protein) by N-acetylglucosamine, and 10 times (14 U/mg protein) by chitosan in Aspergillus oryzae. Addition of NaCl (15 – 23 g/l) to the cultivation medium enhanced the induction in 10 – 20 %.     

Improved in situ β-galactosidase staining for histological analysis of transgenic mice

The present study describes a novel method for the histochemical demonstration of -galactosidase activity on tissue sections. We have replaced 5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indolyl--D-galactoside (X-Gal) with 5-bromoindolyl--o-galactopyranoside (Bluo-Gal) as a chromogenic substrate for the bacterial -galactosidase (lacZ). After -galactosidic cleavage, Bluo-Gal precipitates in form of fine birefringent crystals, whereas X-gal gives rise to an amorphous precipitate. Upon microscopic examination under polarized light, the crystals emit a strong signal consisting of yellow reflected light. This property of Bluo-Gal results in greatly enhanced sensitivity of the staining method for -galactosidase and allows for optimal morphological resolution. To exemplify the applications of this technique, the expression is demonstrated in transgenic mice of -galactosidase driven by a fragment of the human tissue-type plasminogen activator promoter.     

Production of a highly glucose-tolerant extracellular β-glucosidase by three Aspergillus strains

Quercetin was the best inducer for the production of a highly glucose-tolerant, extracellular -glucosidase in Aspergillus niger and Aspergillus oryzae. The enzyme was separated from the major and common -glucosidase by gel filtration and that from Aspergillus oryzae further purified by ion-exchange chromatography. It was highly resistant to glucose inhibition (Ki= 953 mM), had a pI of 4.2, optimum pH of 4.5–6.0 and a molecular mass of 30 kDa according to gel filtration. The enzyme was active against cellobiose and alkyl glucosides.     

Production of β-Mannanase and β-Mannosidase from Aspergillus awamori K4 and Their Properties

β-Mannanase and β-mannosidase from Aspergillus awamori K4 was produced by solid culture with coffee waste and wheat bran. The optimum composition for enzyme production was 40% coffee waste–60% wheat bran. Two enzymes were partially purified. Optimum pH was about 5 for both enzymes, and optimum temperature was around 80°C for β-mannanase and 60–70°C for β-mannosidase. These enzymes produced some oligosaccharides from glucomannan and galactomannan by their hydrolyzing and transferring activities. β-Mannanase hydrolyzed konjak and locust bean gum 39.1% and 15.8%, respectively. Oligosaccharides of various molecular size were released from glucomannan of konjak, but on the addition of cellulase, mannobiose was released selectively. In locust bean gum, tetra-, tri-, and disaccharides (mannobiose) were mainly released by K4 β-mannanase. Tetra- and trisaccharides were heterooligosaccharides consisting of galactose and mannose residues. K4 β-mannosidase had a transglycosylation action, transferring mannose residue to alcohols and sugars like fructose. Received: 24 April 2000/Accepted: 20 October 2000     

Metabolic Engineering for Production of β-Carotene and Lycopene in Saccharomyces cerevisiae

We have engineered a conventional yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, to confer a novel biosynthetic pathway for the production of β-carotene and lycopene by introducing the bacterial carotenoid biosynthesis genes, which are individually surrounded by the promoters and terminators derived from S. cerevisiae. β-Carotene and lycopene accumulated in the cells of this yeast, which was considered to be a result of the carbon flow for the ergosterol biosynthetic pathway being partially directed to the pathway for the carotenoid production.     

Evolved β-Galactosidases from Geobacillus stearothermophilus with Improved Transgalactosylation Yield for Galacto-Oligosaccharide Production

A mutagenesis approach was applied to the β-galactosidase BgaB from Geobacillus stearothermophilus KVE39 in order to improve its enzymatic transglycosylation of lactose into oligosaccharides. A simple screening strategy, which was based on the reduction of the hydrolysis of a potential transglycosylation product (lactosucrose), provided mutant enzymes possessing improved synthetic properties for the autocondensation product from nitrophenyl-galactoside and galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS) from lactose. The effects of the mutations on enzyme activity and kinetics were determined. An change of one arginine to lysine (R109K) increased the oligosaccharide yield compared to that for the wild-type BgaB. Subsequently, saturation mutagenesis at this position demonstrated that valine and tryptophan further increased the transglycosylation performance of BgaB. During the transglycosylation reaction with lactose of the evolved β-galactosidases, a major trisaccharide was formed. Its structure was characterized as β-d-galactopyranosyl-(1→3)-β-d-galactopyranosyl-(1→4)-d-glucopyranoside (3′-galactosyl-lactose). At the lactose concentration of 18% (wt/vol), this trisaccharide was obtained in yields of 11.5% (wt/wt) with GP21 (BgaB R109K), 21% with GP637.2 (BgaB R109V), and only 2% with the wild-type BgaB enzyme. GP643.3 (BgaB R109W) was shown to be the most efficient mutant, with a 3′-galactosyl-lactose production of 23%.Galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS) are established prebiotic food ingredients and are used to enhance the growth of bifidobacteria and lactobacilli in the large intestine in order to reduce the growth of pathogenic microorganisms (3, 26, 27). The increased interest in these products by consumers heightened the need for good catalysts. Therefore, the development of an efficient and inexpensive GOS production method is highly desirable. One approach is to use lactose as a substrate for the preparation of prebiotic carbohydrates. Lactose is a low-value sugar comprising up to 75% of the total dry material in whey, and it accumulates in quantities of approximately 6 million tons annually worldwide (29). In several studies, GOS syntheses from lactose using different β-glycosidases had been reported (21). GOS are usually produced by the transglycosylation reaction during enzymatic hydrolysis of lactose. The proportion of transglycosylation to hydrolysis varies, depending on the different sources of enzymes (20, 22, 30, 31). In most cases yields of oligosaccharides are rather low; presumably the products are substrates for the enzyme and undergo hydrolysis.In order to overcome the hydrolysis problem, attempts to transform a glycosidase into a transglycosidase have been made. The generation of glycosynthases, which are mutants of glycosidases with a nonfunctional catalytically acting nucleophile amino acid residue, was one attempt to improve the transglycosylation yield. Many glycosynthases which demonstrated improved glycoside synthesis have been reported (8, 10, 12). However, this approach requires knowledge of the catalytically acting nucleophile residues of the glycosidase studied. Furthermore, activated glycosyl donors (e.g., glycosyl fluoride substrates of the opposite anomeric conformation) are needed for their enzymatic reaction. Therefore, their potential for use in industrial processes for large-scale production of GOS seems low, because of their inactivity on natural substrates (e.g., lactose).In a second approach, directed-evolution strategies have been used to enhance transglycosidase activity. Using random mutagenesis and in vitro recombination, Feng et al. (10) were able to diminish the hydrolytic activity of β-glycosidase from Thermus thermophilus while significantly increasing the transglycosylation activity. This allowed them to synthesize oligosaccharides through transglycosylation reactions with nitrophenyl-β-glycosides as donors and various glycosides as acceptors. The enhancement of the transglycosylation activities of β-glycosidases toward natural substrates such as lactose was achieved by active-site mutagenesis of β-glucosidase from Pyrococcus furiosus (13) or by using a truncated β-galactosidase from Bifidobacterium bifidum (19).The application of thermostable β-galactosidases is of interest in the conversion of lactose, because at higher temperatures higher lactose concentration can be used, favoring GOS synthesis. Thus, we explored the use of the thermophilic β-galactosidase BgaB from Geobacillus stearothermophilus for transglycosylation reaction on lactose to produce specific GOS. BgaB, belonging to glycoside hydrolase family 42 (15), cloned in Escherichia coli is able to hydrolyze lactose, but its GOS productivity is rather low. Thus, we aimed at increasing the synthetic yield of GOS from lactose exerted by the enzyme. Here we applied a random mutagenic approach together with a screening procedure to obtain mutants possessing higher transgalactosylation activity.     

Detection of endogenous β-glucuronidase activity in Aspergillus niger

 An endogenous β-glucuronidase that hydrolyses the chromogenic substrate 5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indolyl-β-D-glucuronide (X-gluc) in Aspergillus niger is reported. The activity was induced when the fungus was grown in media containing xylan, but was either very low, or absent, when grown on glucose. Endogenous β-glucuronidase was primarily located in newly formed hyphae, and was apparent at pH values between 3 and 6. Hydrolysis of X-gluc was sensitive to the inhibitor D-saccharic acid 1,4-lactone and was irreversibly inactivated by heating. The bacterial uidAβ-glucuronidase reporter gene was strongly expressed in the hyphae of transformed A. niger but, in contrast to the endogenous activity, the enzyme was also active at pH 7–8.5. Histochemical localization of uidA expression in A. niger, without interference from the endogenous β-glucuronidase activity, was achieved by staining at this pH. Received : 22 March 1995/Received last revision : 17 August 1995/Accepted : 22 August 1995     

Increase of β-Fructofuranosidase Content in Tomato Fruit during the Ripening Process

β-Chloro-l-alanine was catalytically converted to pyruvate, ammonia and chloride by α-aminoisobutyrate (AIB) decomposing enzyme (α, β elimination), which was synchronously inactivated. There was a linear relationship between α, β elimination and inactivation. With apoenzyme, neither α, β elimination nor inactivation occurred. These facts suggest that α, β elimination is dependent on pyridoxal 5′-phosphate, and inactivation cooperates with α, β elimination (syncatalytic inactivation). But it seemed that d-form of β-chloroalanine was not a substrate for AIB decomposing enzyme, because just half amount of β-chloro-dl-alanine was decomposed to pyruvate by the enzyme.

An identical active site for each of following three reactions were shown by the fact that AIB decomposing activity, transamination activity and α, β elimination activity were lost in parallel. From a kinetic study, the affinity of the enzyme toward β-chloro-l-alanine was shown to be higher than that toward AIB or l-alanine. The turnover number, about 8,000, of α, β elimination during the inactivation of one mol of the enzyme was much larger than that of d-amino acid transaminase or alanine racemase.     

Evolution of cis-Acting Elements in 5′ Flanking Regions of Vertebrate Actin Genes

Regulation of the vertebrate actin multigene family involves the recognition of various regulatory sequences (cis-acting elements) that specify the distinct tissue type and developmental program of expression for each actin paralogue, which implies that the distribution of cis-acting elements may be unique for each paralogue gene. To elucidate the evolution of these unique distribution patterns, we improved a method to scan for cis-acting elements in the 5′ flanking regulatory region of genes and used it to analyze five cis-acting elements (SRE, MyoD binding site, Elk-1 binding site, positive and negative YY1 binding sites) of six actin paralogue genes (β and γ cytoplasmic actins, α and γ smooth muscle actins, and α skeletal and α cardiac actins) among various vertebrates. It was shown that although an element(s) may exist in all paralogue genes of the same species, its numbers, compositions, and distribution patterns or even sequences vary remarkably among paralogues, which contributes to their different tissue- and developmental-specific expression. However, each pair of coexpressed paralogues has some certain similarity in distribution patterns. Furthermore, among various orthologues of actin genes derived from diverse vertebrates, the sequences, numbers, and distribution patterns of these cis-acting elements are highly conserved or even identical in the long run of phylogeny of vertebrates. Taken together, the results described above strongly indicate that not only the structures of actins but also their expression patterns are essential in both the phylogeny and the physiology of vertebrates. The distribution patterns of cis-acting elements of various actin genes can be regarded as indicators of both horizontal (paralogous) and vertical (orthologous) evolution of actins. Received: 1 March 1999 / Accepted: 6 August 1999     

Production of high activity Aspergillus niger BCC4525 β-mannanase in Pichia pastoris and its application for mannooligosaccharides production from biomass hydrolysis

A cDNA encoding β-mannanase was cloned from Aspergillus niger BCC4525 and expressed in Pichia pastoris KM71. The secreted enzyme hydrolyzed locust bean gum substrate with very high activity (1625 U/mL) and a relatively high k_cat/K_m (461 mg^?1 s^?1 mL). The enzyme is thermophilic and thermostable with an optimal temperature of 70 °C and 40% retention of endo-β-1,4-mannanase activity after preincubation at 70 °C. In addition, the enzyme exhibited broad pH stability with an optimal pH of 5.5. The recombinant enzyme hydrolyzes low-cost biomass, including palm kernel meal (PKM) and copra meal, to produce mannooligosaccharides, which is used as prebiotics to promote the growth of beneficial microflora in animals. An in vitro digestibility test simulating the gastrointestinal tract system of broilers suggested that the recombinant β-mannanase could effectively liberate reducing sugars from PKM-containing diet. These characteristics render this enzyme suitable for utilization as a feed additive to improve animal performance.     

Improved methods for detection of β-galactosidase (lacZ) activity in hard tissue

The β-galactosidase gene (lacZ) of Escherichia coli is widely used as a reporter gene. The expression of lacZ can be detected by enzyme-based histochemical staining using chromogenic substrates such as 5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indolyl-β-D: -galactoside (X-gal). Because the enzymatic activity of lacZ is vulnerable to high temperatures and acid treatment for demineralization, detection of lacZ on paraffinized sections is difficult, especially for hard tissues, which require demineralization before sectioning in paraffin. To circumvent this problem, whole-mount X-gal staining before sectioning is performed. However, detection of lacZ activity in the center of larger portions of hard whole adult tissues is challenging. In this study, focusing on fixation procedures, we determined the conditions conducive to improved detection of lacZ activity in deeper areas of whole tissues. We used an annexin a5 (Anxa5)-lacZ reporter mouse model in which the Anxa5 expression in hard tissue is indicated by lacZ activity. We found that lacZ activity could be detected throughout the periodontal ligament of adult mice when fixed in 100% acetone, whereas it was not detected in the periodontal ligament around the root apex fixed in glutaraldehyde and paraformaldehyde. This staining could not be detected in wild-type mice. Acetone maintains the lacZ activity within 48 h of fixation at both 4°C and at room temperature. In conclusion, acetone is the optimal fixative to improve permeability for staining of lacZ activity in large volumes of adult hard tissues.