Novel Penicillium cellulases for total hydrolysis of lignocellulosics

The (hemi)cellulolytic systems of two novel lignocellulolytic Penicillium strains (Penicillium pulvillorum TUB F-2220 and P. cf. simplicissimum TUB F-2378) have been studied. The cultures of the Penicillium strains were characterized by high cellulase and β-glucosidase as well moderate xylanase activities compared to the Trichoderma reesei reference strains QM 6a and RUTC30 (volumetric or per secreted protein, respectively). Comparison of the novel Penicillium and T. reesei secreted enzyme mixtures in the hydrolysis of (ligno)cellulose substrates showed that the F-2220 enzyme mixture gave higher yields in the hydrolysis of crystalline cellulose (Avicel) and similar yields in hydrolysis of pre-treated spruce and wheat straw than enzyme mixture secreted by the T. reesei reference strain. The sensitivity of the Penicillium cellulase complexes to softwood (spruce) and grass (wheat straw) lignins was lignin and temperature dependent: inhibition of cellulose hydrolysis in the presence of wheat straw lignin was minor at 35 °C while at 45 °C by spruce lignin a clear inhibition was observed. The two main proteins in the F-2220 (hemi)cellulase complex were partially purified and identified by peptide sequence similarity as glycosyl hydrolases (cellobiohydrolases) of families 7 and 6. Adsorption of the GH7 enzyme PpCBH1 on cellulose and lignins was studied showing that the lignin adsorption of the enzyme is temperature and pH dependent. The ppcbh1 coding sequence was obtained using PCR cloning and the translated amino acid sequence of PpCBH1 showed up to 82% amino acid sequence identity to known Penicillium cellobiohydrolases.     

Enhanced cellulase production from Trichoderma reesei QM 9414 on physically treated wheat straw

Summary Trichoderma reesei QM 9414 was grown on wheat straw as the sole carbon source. The straw was pretreated by physical and chemical methods. The particle size of straw was less than 0.177 mm. Growth of T. reesei QM 9414 was maximal with alkali-pretreated straw whereas cellulase production was optimal when physically pretreated straw was used as substrate. Cellulase yields expressed as IU enzyme activity/g cellulose present in the cultures were considerably higher when alkali pretreatment of wheat straw was omitted. Cellulase yields of 666 IU/g cellulose for filter paper activity (FPA) are the highest described for cultures of T. reesei QM 9414 carried out in analogous conditions. Crystallinity index of the cellulose contained in wheat straw increased slightly after alkali pretreatment. This increase did not decrease cellulose accessibility to the fungus. Delignification of wheat straw was not necessary to achieve the best cellulase production.     

The use of canola meal as a substrate for xylanase production by Trichoderma reesei

Summary Tests made utilizing canola meal as a substrate for the production of xylanase indicate that Trichoderma reesei produced this enzyme in similar or better yields from canola meal than from Solka-floc, xylan or glucose. The maximum xylanase activity obtained from canola meal was 210 IU/ml in 9–12 days. The enzyme system produced using canola meal also contained a higher proportion of acetyl-xylan esterase, cellulase, and xylosidase activities. This system was more than or equally efficient as that produced using Solka-floc in hydrolysing canola meal, corn cobs, corn and wheat brans, straw, and larchwood xylan to fermentable sugars. Offprint requests to: Z. Duvnjak     

Enzymatische Hydrolyse und Ethanolgärung von Lignocellulosen

The kinetics of enzymatic hydrolysis of different lignocellulosic materials (wheat straw, newspaper and microcrystalline cellulose Avicel PH 101) was studied using the cellulase complexes from Trichoderma reesei QM 9414 and its mutants M 5, M 6, MHC 15 and MHC 22. The maximum yields of hydrolysis were obtained with wheat straw partially delignified with 1% NaOH as substrate, and using the enzyme from the mutants T. reesei M 6 and MHC 22. The possibility of simultaneous enzymatic hydrolysis and ethanol fermentation of wheat straw using the enzyme complex from M 6 and yeasts of the genus Candida and Torulopsis was also investigated. A good conversion of liberated glucose and cellobiose to ethanol was obtained, however, xylose was not fermented.     

Production of cellulases and xylanase by Trichoderma reesei F-522 on pretreated wheat straw

Autohydrolyzed and ethanol-alkali pulped wheat straw was examined as a candidate feedstock for both cellulase and xylanase production and enzymatic hydrolysis. Submerged cultures of Trichoderma reesei F-522 grown on hydrothermally modified straw provided culture supernatants of the highest enzymatic activities, whereas the maximal efficiency of enzymatic hydrolysis was recorded in straw treated with ethanol-NaOH mixture. Some culture conditions were optimized to improve the growth and cellulase production by T. reesei on autohydrolyzed wheat straw.     

Enzymatic hydrolysis and simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of steam-pretreated spruce using crude Trichoderma reesei and Trichoderma atroviride enzymes

The aim of this study was to compare the performance of the enzymes produced by Trichoderma reesei Rut C30 and the good extracellular β-glucosidase-producing mutant Trichoderma atroviride TUB F-1663 to that of commercial preparations in the enzymatic hydrolysis and the simultaneous saccharification and fermentation (SSF) of steam-pretreated spruce (SPS).The concentrated TUB F-1663 enzyme was found to be the most efficient in the hydrolysis of washed SPS at 50 g/L water-insoluble solids (WIS) in terms of the glucose produced (18.5 g/L), even in comparison with commercial cellulases (14.1–16.7 g/L). The enzyme preparations were studied at low enzyme loadings (5 FPU/g WIS) in SSF to produce ethanol from SPS. The enzyme supernatant and whole fermentation broth of T. atroviride as well as the whole broth of T. reesei proved to be as efficient in SSF as the commercial cellulase mixtures (ethanol yields of 61–76% of the theoretical were achieved), while low ethanol yields (<40%) were obtained with the β-glucosidase-deficient T. reesei supernatant.Therefore, it seems, that instead of using commercial cellulases, the TUB F-1663 enzymes and the whole broth of Rut C30 may be produced on-site, using a process stream as carbon source, and employed directly in the biomass-to-bioethanol process.     

Homologous constitutive expression of Xyn III in Trichoderma reesei QM9414 and its characterization

Xylanase III (Xyn III), a specific endoxylanase that belongs to family 10 of the glycoside hydrolases, was overexpressed in Trichoderma reesei QM9414 using a constitutive strong promoter of the gene encoding pyruvate decarboxylase (pdc). The maximum recombinant xylanase activity achieved was 817.2?±?65.2 U/mL in the transformant fermentation liquid. The productivities of Xyn III accounted for approximately 53 % of the total protein secreted by the recombinant. The enzyme was optimally active at 60 °C and pH 6. The recombinant Xyn III was stable at pH 5–8. This is the first report on the homologous expression of xyn3 in T. reesei QM9414. The properties of Xyn III make it promising in a variety of industrial use.     

Influence of pH on the production of xylanases by Trichoderma reesei Rut C-30

Trichoderma reesei Rut C-30 was cultivated in bioreactors at different pH on a medium with lactose as the main carbon source. Compared to an earlier study, in which T. reesei Rut C-30 was cultivated using polysaccharides (cellulose or xylan) as the main carbon sources, we now report a slightly lower pH value for maximal xylanase levels. The highest xylanase activity (IU/ml) on the lactose-based medium was observed at pH 6.0 compared to pH 7.0 on the polysaccharide-based media. When the pattern of different xylanases was analyzed by isoelectric focusing and activity zymogram, we observed that a low pH (4.0) favoured the production of xylanase I, whilst a high pH (6.0) favoured the production of xylanase III. Xylanase II was clearly produced at both pH values. The results at pH 4 and 6 correlate with the pH activity profiles of xylanase I, II and III. Hence, the different T. reesei xylanases were produced according to which enzyme is most active in that particular environment.     

An α-L-arabinofuranosidase of Trichoderma reesei

An α-L-arabinofuranosidase (EC 3.2.1.55) of Trichoderma reesei was purified to homogeneity by cation- and anion-exchange chromatography. The enzyme had a molecular weight of 53 kDa as estimated by SDS electrophoresis. The isoelectric point of the enzyme was 7.5 and its pH optimum was 4.0. The enzyme hydrolyzed beet arabinan and released arabinose from wheat straw arabinoxylan.     

Localization of carboxymethyl cellulase in the intergeneric fusants of Trichoderma reesei QM 9414 and Saccharomyces cerevisiae NCIM 3288

In order to convert cellulosic material to ethanol by single step process a chemofusion method has been followed between protoplasts of Trichoderma reesei, QM 9414, and the spheroplasts of Saccharomyces cerevisiae, NCIM 3288, in the author's laboratory. The fusion was a success and it was observed that endoglucanase was the key enzyme in the success of the fusion. In the present study, characterization of the fusants based on the endoglucanase synthesis, its localization and the distribution in the cells are described and compared with that of Trichoderma reesei, QM 9414, (wild type).     

Comparative analysis of optimal endoglucanase production by Trichoderma reesei and intergeneric fusants of Trichoderma reesei Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Intergeneric fusants of Trichoderma reesei QM 9414/Saccharomyces cerevisiae NCIM 3288 developed in the authors' laboratory can convert cellulosic materials directly to ethanol in a single step process. The production of endoglucanase in this case is a key factor. The production profile of this enzyme by the intergeneric fusants is different from Trichoderma reesei QM 9414 (WT). The production of endoglucanase was studied seperately by Trichoderma reesei (WT) using optimal production medium which was designed as per the combined screening approach of Plackett-Burman followed by a central composite experimental plan and the intergeneric fusants using optimal production medium obtained by Box-Behnken optimization procedure. Dried grass was used as the cellulosic substance whose concentration was kept constant during the statistical optimization procedure. The concentration of dried grass was later varied keeping the other optimized medium constituents constant to find the final optimum medium composition for endoglucanase production.     

Production of cellulases by Trichoderma reesei QM 9414 in batch and fed-batch cultures on wheat straw

Trichoderma reesei QM 9414 was grown in batch fermentation on wheat straw pretreated by different methods as the sole carbon source. Cellulase production was maximal with NaOH treated wheat straw at a concentration of 10 g/l and an initial pH of 5.5. The addition of fresh straw produced an elongation of the exponential phase or the beginning of a new exponential phase when the additions were carried out at 50 and 120 h, respectively. Filter paper and carboxymethylcellulase activities decreased as an answer to the addition of wheat straw and the levels were regained at the end of fermentation. The decreases of activities were accompanied by the increases of soluble sugar levels, which decreased at the end of fermentation. β-glucosidase activity was stimulated by wheat straw addition at 50 h while not by addition at 120 h; however, at the end of the fermentation the levels of activities were both similar to control. The studies of pH stabilities of these enzymes allow assurance that the effect of the addition of wheat straw on the enzyme activities is not produced by the changes of the pH during the fermentation.     

Intraspecific hybridization of Trichoderma reesei by protoplast fusion

Protoplasts obtained from mycelia of a single auxotrophic mutant of Trichoderma reesei QM 9414 were fused with those of T. reesei QM 9136 in the presence of 0.5 M glycine-NaOH buffer, pH 7.5, containing 0.05 M CaCl₂ · 2H₂O and 35% polyethylene glycol 4,000. The regeneration frequency of these protoplasts was 8.9–12.0% on a solid culture medium with soft agar overlay. The fused protoplasts successfully formed heterokaryons showing 3.33% of the fusion frequency. A heterozygous diploid was obtained from conidia of the heterokaryon by treatment with 0.1% d-camphor. The diploid showed a 1.9 fold DNA content per conidial nucleus compared to T. reesei QM 9414. The frequency of diploid formation was about 1.9 × 10⁻⁴ per conidium. Cellulase activities, such as filter paper degrading and CM-cellulose and Avicel saccharifying activities, and the xylanase activity of the diploid showed intermediate values between those of T. reesei QM 9414 and T. reesei QM 9136. However, the β-glucosidase, β-1,3-glucanase and chitinase activities of the diploid increased to levels equal to on above those of T. reesei QM 9414 and T. reesei QM 9136. The existence of a parasexual cycle of T. reesei and the possibility of its application to enhanced enzyme productivity were confirmed using the protoplast fusion technique.     

Standardization of the filter paper activity assay for solid substrate fermentation

The conditions of the filter paper activity (FPA) assay were standardized for solid substrate fermentation (SSF). The FPA is a relative measure of the overall cellulose hydrolysing capacity of microbial cellulase preparations, thus reliable and comparable data may be obtained only under standardized conditions. The standardization developed for submerged fermentation (SF) cannot be translated directly to SSF. In SSF, the FPA is strongly dependent on the extraction volume and on the dilution of the enzyme in the assay. The optimal extraction volume was substrate dependent in SSF of corn fiber, spent brewing grains and wheat straw for cellulase production by Trichoderma reesei Rut C30. Other cellulolytic enzyme assays (endoglucanase, beta-glucosidase and xylanase) were much less sensitive to the extraction volume.     

A high performance Trichoderma reesei strain that reveals the importance of xylanase III in cellulosic biomass conversion

The ability of the Trichoderma reesei X3AB1strain enzyme preparations to convert cellulosic biomass into fermentable sugars is enhanced by the replacement of xyn3 by Aspergillus aculeatus β-glucosidase 1 gene (aabg1), as shown in our previous study.However, subsequent experiments using T. reesei extracts supplemented with the glycoside hydrolase (GH) family 10 xylanase III (XYN III) and GH Family 11 XYN II showed increased conversion of alkaline treated cellulosic biomass, which is rich in xylan, underscoring the importance of XYN III.To attain optimal saccharifying potential in T. reesei, we constructed two new strains, C1AB1 and E1AB1, in which aabg1 was expressed heterologously by means of the cbh1 or egl1 promoters, respectively, so that the endogenous XYN III synthesis remained intact. Due to the presence of wild-type xyn3 in T. reesei E1AB1, enzymes prepared from this strain were 20–30% more effective in the saccharification of alkaline-pretreated rice straw than enzyme extracts from X3AB1, and also outperformed recent commercial cellulase preparations. Our results demonstrate the importance of XYN III in the conversion of alkaline-pretreated cellulosic biomass by T. reesei.     

Solid-State Fermentation with Trichoderma reesei for Cellulase Production

Cellulase yields of 250 to 430 IU/g of cellulose were recorded in a new approach to solid-state fermentation of wheat straw with Trichoderma reesei QMY-1. This is an increase of ca. 72% compared with the yields (160 to 250 IU/g of cellulose) in liquid-state fermentation reported in the literature. High cellulase activity (16 to 17 IU/ml) per unit volume of enzyme broth and high yields of cellulases were attributed to the growth of T. reesei on a hemicellulose fraction during its first phase and then on a cellulose fraction of wheat straw during its later phase for cellulase production, as well as to the close contact of hyphae with the substrate in solid-state fermentation. The cellulase system obtained by the solid-state fermentation of wheat straw contained cellulases (17.2 IU/ml), β-glucosidase (21.2 IU/ml), and xylanases (540 IU/ml). This cellulase system was capable of hydrolyzing 78 to 90% of delignified wheat straw (10% concentration) in 96 h, without the addition of complementary enzymes, β-glucosidase, and xylanases.     

Improvement of corn stover bioconversion efficiency by using plant glycoside hydrolase

Plant cell wall is the most abundant substrate for bioethanol production, and plants also represent a key resource for glycoside hydrolase (GH). To exploit efficient way for bioethanol production with lower cellulase loading, the potential of plant GH for lignocellulose bioconversion was evaluated. The GH activity for cell wall proteins (CWPs) was detected from fresh corn stover (FCS), and the synergism of which with Trichoderma reesei cellulase was also observed. The properties for the GH of FCS make it a promising enzyme additive for lignocellulose biodegradation. To make use of the plant GH, novel technology for hydrolysis and ethanol fermentation was developed with corn stover as substrate. Taking steam-exploded corn stover as substrate for hydrolysis and ethanol fermentation, compared with T. reesei cellulase loaded alone, the final glucose and ethanol accumulation increased by 60% and 63% respectively with GH of FCS as an addition.     

Selective induction of β-glucosidase in Trichoderma reesei by xylan

Summary In Trichoderma reesei, QM 9414, -glucosidase can be selectively induced by xylan. At a concentration of 0.5% xylan in the growth medium, the yield of -glucosidase is 3 times more than in cellulose medium suggesting that the synthesis of this enzyme in this organism is under an independent regulatory control.     

Production of Xylanase of Bacillus coagulans and its bleaching potential

Summary The production of xylanase from Bacillus coagulans has been studied with respect to the environmental parameters, the carbon source and the concentration of carbon source at the shake flask level. Among the various carbon sources used, wheat straw powder favoured higher enzyme production. Xylan isolated from wheat straw gave higher enzyme production as compared to the birchwood xylan. Maximum enzyme activity of 165 IU/ml was obtained with 2% wheat straw xylan in a shake flask study. Improvement of xylanase production was achieved by increasing the wheat straw powder concentration up to 3%. Enzyme has optimum activity at a temperature of 55 °C and pH of 7. The concentrated crude enzyme was found to reduce the kappa number of enzyme-treated eucalyptus pulp by␣5.45% with a marginal increase in the CED viscosity of the enzyme treated pulp as compared to the non-enzymatically treated pulp.     

A third xylanase from Trichoderma reesei PC-3-7

A third xylanase (Xyn III) from Trichoderma reesei PC-3–7 was purified to electrophoretic homogeneity by gel filtration and ion-exchange chromatographies. The enzyme had a molecular mass of 32 kDa, and its isoelectric point was 9.1. The pH optimum of Xyn III was 6.0, similar to that of Xyn II, another basic xylanase of  T. reesei. The purified Xyn III showed high activity with birchwood xylan but no activity with cellulose and aryl glycoside. The hydrolysis of birchwood xylan by Xyn III produced mainly xylobiose, xylotriose and other xylooligosaccharides. The amino acid sequences of the N-terminus and internal peptides of Xyn III exhibited high homology with the family F xylanases, showing that they were distinct from those of Xyn I and Xyn II of  T. reesei, which belong to family G. These results reveal that Xyn III is a new specific endoxylanase, differing from Xyn I and Xyn II in  T. reesei. It is noteworthy that this novel xylanase was induced only by cellulosic substrates and l-sorbose but not by xylan and its derivarives. Furthermore,  T. reesei PC-3-7 produced Xyn III in quantity when grown on Avicel or lactose as a carbon source, while  T. reesei QM9414 produced little or no Xyn III. Received: 7 November 1997 / Received last revision: 2 February 1988 / Accepted: 23 February 1998