Purification and characterization of two extracellular beta-glucosidases from Trichoderma reesei.

A major beta-glucosidase I and a minor beta-glucosidase II were purified from culture filtrates of the fungus Trichoderma reesei grown on wheat straw. The enzymes were purified using CM-Sepharose CL-6B cation-exchange and DEAE Bio-Gel A anion-exchange chromatography steps, followed by Sephadex G-75 gel filtration. The isolated enzymes were homogeneous in SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and isoelectric focusing. beta-Glucosidase I (71 kDa) was isoelectric at pH 8.7 and contained 0.12% carbohydrate; beta-glucosidase II (114 kDa) was isoelectric at pH 4.8 and contained 9.0% carbohydrate. Both enzymes catalyzed the hydrolysis of cellobiose and p-nitrophenyl-beta-D-glucoside (pNPG). The Km and kcat/Km values for cellobiose were 2.10 mM, 2.45.10(4) s-1 M-1 (beta-glucosidase I) and 11.1 mM, 1.68.10(3) s-1 M-1 (beta-glucosidase II). With pNPG as substrate the Km and kcat/Km values were 182 microM, 7.93.10(5) s-1 M-1 (beta-glucosidase I) and 135 microM, 1.02.10(6) s-1 M-1 (beta-glucosidase II). The temperature optimum was 65-70 degrees C for beta-glucosidase I and 60 degrees C for beta-glucosidase II, the pH optimum was 4.6 and 4.0, respectively. Several inhibitors were tested for their action on both enzymes. beta-Glucosidase I and II were competitively inhibited by desoxynojirimycin, gluconolactone and glucose.     

Separation and Some Properties of Two Intracellular beta-Glucosidases of Sporotrichum (Chrysosporium) thermophile

Intracellular, inducible beta-glucosidase from the cellulolytic fungus Sporotrichum (Chrysosporium) thermophile (ATCC 42464) was fractionated by gel chromatography or isoelectric focusing into components A and B. Enzyme A (molecular weight 440,000) had only aryl-beta-glucosidase activity, whereas enzyme B (molecular weight 40,000) hydrolyzed several beta-glucosides but had only low activity against o-nitrophenyl-beta-d-glucopyranoside (ONPG). Both enzymes had temperature optima of about 50 degrees C. The pH optimum was 5.6 for enzyme A and 6.3 for enzyme B, respectively. The K(m) (ONPG) value for enzyme A was 0.5 mM, and the corresponding values for enzyme B were 0.18 mM (ONPG) and 0.28 mM (cellobiose). Enzyme B, when tested with ONPG, showed substrate inhibition at a substrate concentration above 0.4 mM which could be released by cellobiitol and other alditols. Enzyme A was isoelectric at pH 4.48, and enzyme B was isoelectric at pH 4.64. Several inhibitors were tested for their action on the activity of enzymes A and B. Both enzymes were found to be concomitantly induced in cultures with either cellobiose or cellulose as carbon source.     

Continuous spectrophotometric assays for beta-glucosidases acting on the plant glucosides L-picein and prunasin.

The neutral pH optimum beta-glucosidases of mammalian liver and almonds are each capable of hydrolyzing a number of plant glucosides, including L-picein (p-hydroxyacetophenone-beta-D-glucoside) and prunasin (D-mandelonitrile-beta-D-glucoside). Taking advantage of the marked differences in the spectra of the substrate/product pairs of L-picein/p-hydroxyacetophenone and prunasin/mandelonitrile, we have devised spectrophotometric assays that permit the continuous monitoring at pH 7.0 of p-hydroxyacetophenone (piceol) release from L-picein by guinea pig hepatic cytosolic beta-glucosidase and mandelonitrile from prunasin by almond beta-glucosidase. When L-picein hydrolysis was monitored at 320 nm and prunasin at 282 nm, the molar absorption coefficients determined for their products, namely piceol and mandelonitrile, were 3200 and 1360 M-1 cm-1, respectively. The kinetic parameter Km and Vmax values obtained using these spectrophotometric procedures for the guinea pig liver cytosolic beta-glucosidase acting on L-picein were 0.88 mM and 5.29 x 10(5) units/mg protein and for the almond beta-glucosidase acting on prunasin, Km 1.1 mM and Vmax 5.24 x 10(6) units/mg protein. These values agreed well with previously reported values obtained using less convenient, discontinuous assay procedures.     

Production, Purification, and Properties of a Thermostable beta-Glucosidase from a Color Variant Strain of Aureobasidium pullulans

A color variant strain of Aureobasidium pullulans (NRRL Y-12974) produced beta-glucosidase activity when grown in liquid culture on a variety of carbon sources, such as cellobiose, xylose, arabinose, lactose, sucrose, maltose, glucose, xylitol, xylan, cellulose, starch, and pullulan. An extracellular beta-glucosidase was purified 129-fold to homogeneity from the cell-free culture broth of the organism grown on corn bran. The purification protocol included ammonium sulfate treatment, CM Bio-Gel A agarose column chromatography, and gel filtrations on Bio-Gel A-0.5m and Sephacryl S-200. The beta-glucosidase was a glycoprotein with native molecular weight of 340,000 and was composed of two subunits with molecular weights of about 165,000. The enzyme displayed optimal activity at 75 degrees C and pH 4.5 and had a specific activity of 315 mumol . min . mg of protein under these conditions. The purified beta-glucosidase was active against p-nitrophenyl-beta-d-glucoside, cellobiose, cellotriose, cellotetraose, cellopentaose, cellohexaose, and celloheptaose, with K(m) values of 1.17, 1.00, 0.34, 0.36, 0.64, 0.68, and 1.65 mM, respectively. The enzyme activity was competitively inhibited by glucose (K(i) = 5.65 mM), while fructose, arabinose, galactose, mannose, and xylose (each at 56 mM) and sucrose and lactose (each at 29 mM) were not inhibitory. The enzyme did not require a metal ion for activity, and its activity was not affected by p-chloromercuribenzoate (0.2 mM), EDTA (10 mM), or dithiothreitol (10 mM). Ethanol (7.5%, vol/vol) stimulated the initial enzyme activity by 15%. Glucose production was enhanced by 7.9% when microcrystalline cellulose (2%, wt/vol) was treated for 48 h with a commercial cellulase preparation (5 U/ml) that was supplemented with the purified beta-glucosidase (0.21 U/ml) from A. pullulans.     

Effect of phenolic monomers on the growth and beta-glucosidase activity of Bacteroides ruminicola and on the carboxymethylcellulase, beta-glucosidase, and xylanase activities of Bacteroides succinogenes

trans-p-Coumaric acid inhibited the growth of Bacteroides ruminicola on both cellobiose and glucose, while trans-ferulic acid and vanillin retarded growth. The phenolic monomers varied in their potential to inhibit the Bacteroides succinogenes beta-glucosidase, carboxymethylcellulase, and xylanase, with p-coumaric acid being the most inhibitory. The B. ruminicola beta-glucosidase was inhibited less than 10% by all three compounds.     

Effect of phenolic monomers on the growth and beta-glucosidase activity of Bacteroides ruminicola and on the carboxymethylcellulase, beta-glucosidase, and xylanase activities of Bacteroides succinogenes.

trans-p-Coumaric acid inhibited the growth of Bacteroides ruminicola on both cellobiose and glucose, while trans-ferulic acid and vanillin retarded growth. The phenolic monomers varied in their potential to inhibit the Bacteroides succinogenes beta-glucosidase, carboxymethylcellulase, and xylanase, with p-coumaric acid being the most inhibitory. The B. ruminicola beta-glucosidase was inhibited less than 10% by all three compounds.     

Syntheses of α-tocopheryl glycosides by glucosidases

Enzymatic syntheses of water-soluble alpha-tocopheryl glycosides were carried out in di-isopropyl ether using amyloglucosidase from Rhizopus mold or beta-glucosidase isolated from sweet almond. Optimum conditions for the amyloglucosidase were: alpha-tocopherol 0.5 mmol, D-glucose 0.5 mmol, 400 activity unit (AU) amyloglucosidase, 0.2 mM pH 7 phosphate buffer and 72 h; and for the beta-glucosidase: alpha-tocopherol 0.5 mmol, D: -glucose 0.5 mmol, 110 AU beta-glucosidase, 0.1 mM pH 6 phosphate buffer and 72 h. Out of 11 carbohydrates employed, amyloglucosidase reacted only with D-glucose to give 50% of 6-O-(alpha-D-glucopyranosyl)alpha-tocopherol. However, the beta-glucosidase gave 6-O-(beta-D-glucopyranosyl)alpha-tocopherol, 6-O-(alpha-D-galactopyranosyl)alpha-tocopherol, 6-O-(beta-D-galactopyranosyl)alpha-tocopherol, 6-O-(alpha-D-mannopyranosyl)alpha-tocopherol and 6-O-(beta-D-mannopyranosyl)alpha-tocopherol in yields ranging from 10-25%. Water solubility of 6-O-(alpha-D-glucopyranosyl)alpha-tocopherol was 26 g/l at 25 degrees C. alpha-Tocopheryl glycosides showed antioxidant activities with IC(50) values from 0.5 to 1 mM and angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitory activity with IC(50) values from 1.3 to 2.6 mM.     

Comparative study of glucosidases from the thermophilic fungus Thermoascus aurantiacus Miehe. Purification and characterization of intracellular beta-glucosidase

Intracellular beta-glucosidase was extracted from the mycelium of Th. aurantiacus, concentrated by DEAE-cellulose treatment, separated from alpha-glucosidase by hydroxylapatite chromatography and purified to electrophoretic homogeneity. Optimally active at 75 degrees C and pH 4.2, beta-glucosidase displayed complex kinetics with p-nitrophenyl-beta-glucoside which inhibited the enzyme at concentrations greater than 0.5 mM. With cellobiose the kinetics were practically hyperbolic at 70 degrees C (Hill coefficient nH = 1.09 and Km = 0.83 mM), but faint inhibition was observed at 50 degrees C. beta-glucosidase shares with alpha-glucosidase a high number of physicochemical properties: with similar aminoacid composition, very close isoelectric point (4.5 and 4.2), high molecular weight in the native state (175,000 and 140,000), the two enzymes showed the same behaviour on DEAE-cellulose, were equally stable at high temperature and were dissociated by 6 M urea to still active proteins. Furthermore, the carbohydrate contents of beta-glucosidase (17.6%) is not far from that previously determined for some forms of alpha-glucosidase (14-16%).     

Inhibition of beta-glycosidases by acarbose analogues containing cellobiose and lactose structures

Acarbose analogues, containing cellobiose and lactose structures, were prepared by reaction of the two disaccharides with acarbose and Bacillus stearothermophilus maltogenic amylase. The kinetics for the inhibition by the two analogues was studied for beta-glucosidase, beta-galactosidase, cyclomaltodextrin glucanosyltransferase (CGTase), and alpha-glucosidase. Both analogues were potent competitive inhibitors for beta-glucosidase, with K(I) values in the range of 0.04-2.44 microM, and the lactose analogues were good uncompetitive inhibitors for beta-galactosidase, with K(I) values in the range of 159-415 microM, while acarbose was not an inhibitor for either enzyme at 10 and 5 mM, respectively. Both analogues were also potent mixed inhibitors for CGTase, with K(I) values in the range of 0.1-9.3 microM. The lactose analogue was a 6.4-fold better competitive inhibitor for alpha-glucosidase than was acarbose.     

Induction of cellulose in Schizophyllum commune: thiocellobiose as a new inducer.

Several mono-, di, tetra-, and polysaccharides were screened for their ability to induced cellulase production by the tetrapolar hymenomycete Schizophyllum commune. Out of 21 carbohydrates screened, 4 (thiocellobiose, carboxymethylcellulose, cellobiose, and xylan) induced all three enzymes tested (carboxymethylcellulase, beta-glucosidase, and xylanase). The inducing effect increased with rising concentrations of the inducers up to a certain value, beyond which there was either a leveling off or a decrease of the enzymatic activities. The most powerful inducer, thiocellobiose, showed the highest activity at 0.5 mM. Cellobiose, carboxymethylcellulose, and xylan showed their highest activities at 1 mM and 1%, respectively. Surprisingly, sophorose did not enhance enzyme production. The enzymatic activities were monitored over a period of 24 h. Thiocelloboise elicited a response immediately after incubation, but with all other inducers there was a latency period before their effect could be measured. High-performance liquid chromatography showed no hydrolysis of thiocellobiose when incubated in the presence of S. commune extracellular enzymes.     

Purification and characterization of an extracellular beta-glucosidase produced by Phoma sp. KCTC11825BP isolated from rotten mandarin peel

A beta-glucosidase from Phoma sp. KCTC11825BP isolated from rotten mandarin peel was purified 8.5-fold with a specific activity of 84.5 U/mg protein. The purified enzyme had a molecular mass of 440 kDa with a subunit of 110 kDa. The partial amino acid sequence of the purified beta-glucosidase evidenced high homology with the fungal beta- glucosidases belonging to glycosyl hydrolase family 3. Its optimal activity was detected at pH 4.5 and 60 degrees C, and the enzyme had a half-life of 53 h at 60 degrees C. The Km values for p-nitrophenyl-beta-D-glucopyranoside and cellobiose were 0.3 mM and 3.2 mM, respectively. The enzyme was competitively inhibited by both glucose (Ki=1.7 mM) and glucono-delta-lactone (Ki=0.1 mM) when pNPG was used as the substrate. Its activity was inhibited by 41% by 10 mM Cu2+ and stimulated by 20% by 10 mM Mg2+.     

Production, purification, and characterization of a highly glucose-tolerant novel beta-glucosidase from Candida peltata.

Candida peltata (NRRL Y-6888) produced beta-glucosidase when grown in liquid culture on various substrates (glucose, xylose, L-arabinose, cellobiose, sucrose, and maltose). An extracellular beta-glucosidase was purified 1,800-fold to homogeneity from the culture supernatant of the yeast grown on glucose by salting out with ammonium sulfate, ion-exchange chromatography with DEAE Bio-Gel A agarose, Bio-Gel A-0.5m gel filtration, and cellobiose-Sepharose affinity chromatography. The enzyme was a monomeric protein with an apparent molecular weight of 43,000 as determined by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and gel filtration. It was optimally active at pH 5.0 and 50 degrees C and had a specific activity of 108 mumol.min-1.mg of protein-1 against p-nitrophenyl-beta-D-glucoside (pNP beta G). The purified beta-glucosidase readily hydrolyzed pNP beta G, cellobiose, cellotriose, cellotetraose, cellopentaose, and cellohexaose, with Km values of 2.3, 66, 39, 35, 21, and 18 mM, respectively. The enzyme was highly tolerant to glucose inhibition, with a Ki of 1.4 M (252 mg/ml). Substrate inhibition was not observed with 40 mM pNP beta G or 15% cellobiose. The enzyme did not require divalent cations for activity, and its activity was not affected by p-chloromercuribenzoate (0.2 mM), EDTA (10 mM), or dithiothreitol (10 mM). Ethanol at an optimal concentration (0.75%, vol/vol) stimulated the initial enzyme activity by only 11%. Cellobiose (10%, wt/vol) was almost completely hydrolyzed to glucose by the purified beta-glucosidase (1.5 U/ml) in both the absence and presence of glucose (6%). Glucose production was enhanced by 8.3% when microcrystalline cellulose (2%, wt/vol) was treated for 24 h with a commercial cellulase preparation (cellulase, 5 U/ml; beta-glucosidase, 0.45 U/ml) that was supplemented with purified beta-glucosidase (0.4 U/ml).     

Cell-specific differences in membrane beta-glucosidase from normal and Gaucher cells.

Two isozymes of membrane-bound beta-glucosidase (beta-D-glucoside glucohydrolase, EC 3.2.1.21) with activity towards 4-methylumbelliferyl-beta-D-glucopyranoside have been identified in human cells. One of these isozymes was found to have a pH optimum of 5.0, a Km of 0.4 mM and to be rapidly inactivated at pH 4.0 ("acid-labile"). The second isozyme had a pH optimum of 4.5, a Km of 0.8 mM and was stable at pH 4.0 ("acid-stable"). Cultured long-term lymphoid lines and peripheral blood leukocytes contained both isozymes while cultured skin fibroblasts contained only the "acid-stable" form in detectable amounts. The specific activity of the "acid-stable" isozyme was severely reduced in cultured skin fibroblasts, cultured long-term lines and peripheral leukocytes from patients with Gaucher's disease. The specific activity of the "acid-labile" enzyme in the latter two cell types was apparently unaffected. The beta-glucosidase activity in all three cell types examined was predominantly particulate but the enzyme could be solubilized with low concentrations of Triton X-100. The solubilized enzyme required sodium taurocholate (0.2%) for maximum activity. Solubilized beta-glucosidase did not exhibit the cell-specific differences in pH optimum and Km shown by the membrane-bound enzyme.     

Furostanol glycoside 26-O-beta-glucosidase from the leaves of Solanum torvum

A beta-glucosidase (torvosidase) was purified to homogeneity from the young leaves of Solanum torvum. The enzyme was highly specific for cleavage of the glucose unit attached to the C-26 hydroxyl of furostanol glycosides from the same plant, namely torvosides A and H. Purified torvosidase is a monomeric glycoprotein, with a native molecular weight of 87 kDa by gel filtration and a pI of 8.8 by native agarose IEF. Optimum pH of the enzyme for p-nitrophenyl-beta-glucoside and torvoside H was 5.0. Kinetic studies showed that Km values for torvoside A (0.06 3mM) and torvoside H (0.068 mM) were much lower than those for synthetic substrates, pNP-beta-glucoside (1.03 mM) and 4-methylumbelliferyl-beta-glucoside (0.78 mM). The enzyme showed strict specificity for the beta-d-glucosyl bond when tested for glycone specificity. Torvosidase hydrolyses only torvosides and dalcochinin-8'-beta-glucoside, which is the natural substrate of Thai rosewood beta-glucosidase, but does not hydrolyse other natural substrates of the GH1 beta-glucosidases or of the GH3 beta-glucosidase families. Torvosidase also hydrolyses C5-C10 alkyl-beta-glucosides, with a rate of hydrolysis increasing with longer alkyl chain length. The internal peptide sequence of Solanum beta-glucosidase shows high similarity to the sequences of family GH3 glycosyl hydrolases.     

Purification and Properties of beta-Glucosidase from Aspergillus terreus

A beta-glucosidase (EC 3.2.1.21) from the fungus Aspergillus terreus was purified to homogeneity as indicated by disc acrylamide gel electrophoresis. Optimal activity was observed at pH 4.8 and 50 degrees C. The beta-glucosidase had K(m) values of 0.78 and 0.40 mM for p-nitrophenyl-beta-d-glucopyranoside and cellobiose, respectively. Glucose was a competitive inhibitor, with a K(i) of 3.5 mM when p-nitrophenyl-beta-d-glucopyranoside was used as the substrate. The specific activity of the enzyme was found to be 210 IU and 215 U per mg of protein on p-nitrophenyl-beta-d-glucopyranoside and cellobiose substrates, respectively. Cations, proteases, and enzyme inhibitors had little or no effect on the enzyme activity. The beta-glucosidase was found to be a glycoprotein containing 65% carbohydrate by weight. It had a Stokes radius of 5.9 nm and an approximate molecular weight of 275,000. The affinity and specific activity that the isolated beta-glucosidase exhibited for cellobiose compared favorably with the values obtained for beta-glucosidases from other organisms being studied for use in industrial cellulose saccharification.     

Characterization of beta-glucosidase isoenzymes possibly involved in lignification from chick pea (Cicer arietinum L.) cell suspension cultures.

Crude cell wall preparations from Cicer arietinum L. cell suspension cultures show high activity for the hydrolysis of coniferyl alcohol beta-D-glucoside (coniferin). Various beta-glucosidase activities could be solubilized from these preparations by 0.5 M NaCl treatment and one of these could be shown to possess a high activity for the hydrolysis of coniferin. The enzyme activities were purified to near homogeneity by Sephadex G-200 and CM-Sephadex chromatography. Isoelectric focussing indicated the occurrence of beta-glucosidase isoenzymes with identical catalytic activity (pI 8.5-10). Molecular weights were determined as 110 000, with two subunits of 63 000 and 43 000. Maximum hydrolytic activity is at pH 5. The beta-glucosidase isoenzymes catalyze the hydrolysis of various beta-glucosides with aromatic aglycone structure and different sugar moieties. However, coniferin has been found to be one of the best substrates (km = 0.8 mM; V = 6 mumol.min-1.mg protein-1) for these beta-glucosidase isoenzymes. The data suggest that beta-glucosidase-catalyzed reaction might be involved in lignification of these plant cell cultures.     

Purin-6-yl 6-deoxy-1-thio-beta-D-glucopyranoside. Enzymology, chemistry, and cytotoxicity

Purin-6-yl 6-deoxy-1-thio-beta-D-glucopyranoside (4) is a substrate for almond beta-glucosidase and a weak competitive inhibitor of bovine liver beta-D-glucuronidase (Ki approximately 20mM). Both 4 and purine-protonated 4 undergo hydrolysis catalyzed by dilute acid in the pH range 0.17-2.59. These results are compared with those previously obtained with ammonium (purin-6-yl 1-thio-beta-D-glucopyranosid)uronate, (purin-6-yl 1-thio-beta-D-glucopyranosid)uronamide, purin-6-yl 1-thio-beta-D-glucopyranoside, and purin-6-yl 2-deoxy-1-thio-beta-D-glucopyranoside, and it is concluded that the data support an involvement of substituents at C-5 in producing productive Michaelis-complex conformers. The 6-deoxyglucoside is more active than the D-glucosiduronic acid in an L1210 mouse screen.     

Purification and properties of a β-glucosidase from Penicillium oxalicum autolysates

A beta-glucosidase from the medium of an autolyzed culture of Penicillium oxalicum has been purified by tannic acid precipitation, sephacryl S-200, DEAE-Biogel, CM-Biogel and Mono Q successively. The purification process produced a homogeneous band in the SDS-PAGE that correspond to a Mr of 133,500. The enzyme had a pl of 4, and the active optima were found at pH 5.5 and 55 degrees C. The enzyme hydrolyzed different substrates showing maximum affinity against p-nitrophenyl-beta-D-glucoside with a Km value of 0.37 mM. The beta-glucosidase was inhibited by Glucono-D-lactone but not by glucose in the concentration range of 1 to 10 mM. The enzyme was adsorbed by Concanavalin-A-Sepharose.