Fractionation of cellulase and β-glucosidase in a Trichoderma reesei culture liquid by use of two-phase partitioning

An aqueous two-phase system based on the two polymers poly(ethylene glycol) and dextran has been used for the fractionation of cellulase enzymes present in culture liquid obtained by fermentation with Trichoderma reesei. The activities of -glucosidase and glucanases were separated to high degree by using the two-phase systems for a counter-current distribution process in nine transfer steps. While the glucanases had high affinity to the poly(ethylene glycol) rich top phase the -glucosidase was enriched in the dextran-containing bottom phase. Multiple counter-current distribution performed indicates the heterogeneity of -glucosidase activities assuming at least four isoenzyme forms. One step concentration of -glucosidase by using system with 46:1 phase volume ratio resulted in 16 times higher enzyme activity.This revised version was published online in October 2005 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Specificity of cellulase and β-xylanase induction in Trichoderma reesei QM 9414

Cellulose- and xylan-degrading enzymes of Trichoderma reesei QM 9414 induced by, sophorose, xylobiose, cellulose and xylan were analyzed by isoelectric focusing. The sophorose-induced enzyme system contained two types of endo-1,4--glucanases (EC 3.2.1.4), one specific for cellulose and the other non-specific, hydrolyzing both cellulose and xylan, and exo-1,4--glucanases (cellobiohydrolases I, EC 3.2.1.91), i.e. all types of glucanases that are produced during growth on cellulose. Specific endo-1,4--xylanases (EC 3.2.1.8) present in the cellulose-containing medium were less abundant in the sophorose-induced enzyme system. Xylobiose and xylan induced only specific endo-1,4--xylanases. It is concluded that syntheses of cellulases and -xylanases in T. reesei QM 9414 are under separate control and that the non-specific endo-1,4--glucanases are constituents of the cellulose-degrading enzyme system.     

Is an organic nitrogen source needed for cellulase production by Trichoderma reesei Rut-C30?

The effect of organic and inorganic nitrogen sources on Trichoderma reesei Rut-C30 cellulase production was investigated in submerged cultivations. Stirred tank bioreactors and shake flasks, with and without pH control, respectively, were employed. The experimental design involved the addition of individual organic nitrogen sources (soy peptone, glutamate, glycine and alanine) within a basal medium containing Avicel (i.e. micro crystalline cellulose) and ammonium sulphate. It was found that in the shake flask experiments, the highest cellulase activities (~0.1 ± 0.02 FPU ml^?1) were obtained with media containing soy peptone (3–6 g l^?1) and glutamate (3.6 g l^?1). However, these improvements in the cellulase titers in the presence of the organic nitrogen sources appeared to be related to smaller changes in the pH of the medium. This was confirmed using stirred tank bioreactors with pH control. No significant differences were observed in the highest cellulase titers and the protein pattern (according to the SDS-PAGE) of supernatants from pH controlled stirred tank bioreactor cultivations, when different nitrogen sources were used in the medium. Here the cellulase activities (~1.0 ± 0.2 FPU ml^?1) were also much greater (8–150 times) than in shake flask cultivation. Consequently, the addition of ammonium sulphate as sole nitrogen source to Avicel basal medium is recommended when performing cultivations in stirred tank bioreactors with strict pH controlled conditions.     

Purification,and characterization of a β-mannanase of Trichoderma reesei C-30

Trichoderma reesei was studied for its ability to produce -mannanase activity on a variety of carbon sources. The highest -mannanase activity was produced on cellulose, whereas -mannan-containing carbon sources (such as kojac powder or locust bean gum) gave lower enzyme titres. The enzyme responsible for the major -mannanolytic activity from T. reesei was purified to physical homogeneity by preparative chromatofocusing and anion exchange fast protein liquid chromatography. This -mannanase is a glycoprotein, with a molecular mass of 46 (±2) kDa and an isoelectric point of 5.2. It has an optimal pH at 5.0 and broad pH stability (2.5–7.0). It is stable for 60 min at 55° C, and has an optimal temperature for activity at 75° C. During incubation with locust bean gum, the enzyme releases mainly tri- and disaccharides. Correspondence to: C. P. Kubicek     

Fibril formation from cellulose by a novel protein from Trichoderma reesei: A non-hydrolytic cellulolytic component?

A low molecular weight protein, named fibril-forming protein (FFP), was isolated from the culture supernatant of Avicel-grown Trichoderma reesei. The protein was purified to homogeneity and it exhibited a molecular weight of 11,400Da. Low amounts of this protein caused apparently non-hydrolytic disruption of filter paper, releasing fibrils without any detectable release of reducing sugars. It displayed no hydrolytic activity on carboxymethylcellulose (CMC), p-nitrophenyl--d-glucoside (pNPG) or 4-methylumbelliferyl cellobioside. The pH optimum of the protein was between 4 and 5. The temperature optimum was 40°C and the computed activation energy (E_a) for the filter paper disruption process was 4.18kcal/mol, suggesting disruption of non-covalent bonds. It had no immunological cross reactivity with reported cellulase components of T. reesei.     

Regulation of β-xylosidase formation by xylose in Trichoderma reesei

The soft-rot fungus Trichoderma reesei forms -xylosidase (EC 3.2.1.37) activity during cultivation on xylan and xylose, but not on glucose. When mycelia precultivated on glycerol were washed and transferred to fresh medium without a carbon and nitrogen source, -xylosidase formation was induced by xylan, xylobiose and xylose. A supply of 4 mm xylose and a pH of 2.5 provided optimal conditions for induction. -Xylosidase accounted for the major portion of total extracellular protein under these conditions, and could be purified to physical homogeneity by a single anion exchange chromatography step. A recombinant strain of T. reesei that carries multiple copies of the homologous xylanase II-encoding gene has a six-fold increased xylanase activity, but forms comparable -xylosidase activities. This shows that the rate of xylan hydrolysis has no effect on the induction of -xylosidase. Methyl--d-xyloside inhibited -xylosidase competitively and was a weak -xylosidase inducer. The induction by xylobiose and xylan was strongly enhanced by the simultaneous addition of methyl--d-xylosidese and xylan or xylobiose. The results suggest that a slow supply of xylose is a trigger for -xylosidase induction.     

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.     

Isolation of a β-glucosidase binding and activating polysaccharide from cell walls of Trichoderma reesei

The extracellular -glucosidase from the filamentous fungus Trichoderma reesei QM 9414 is mainly bound to the cell wall of the fungus and only partially released into the medium. Isolation of the cell walls and its hydrolysis by enzymatic treatment with Aspergillus niger cellulase released -glucosidase, which appeared tightly associated with a cell wall polysaccharide. This polysaccharide was purified by gel filtration and ion exchange chromatography and was shown to consist of mannose, galactose, glucose, galacturonic acid and glucuronic acid. It was devoid of protein and phosphate. It reassociated both with extracellular -glucosidase as well as -glucosidase released from the fungus' cell wall. Addition of the polysaccharide to the -glucosidase in vitro increased the enzyme's activity against 4-nitrophenyl--glucoside twofold. These findings suggest, that the isolated polysaccharide functions as an anchor glycan for the -glucosidase in Trichoderma reesei.     

Release of carboxymethyl-cellulase and β-glucosidase from cell walls of Trichoderma reesei

Summary Carboxymethyl-cellulase and -glucosidase activities were determined in the cytosole, cell walls and extracellular culture fluid of Trichoderma reesei QM 9414 cultivated on cellulose and cellobiose. By means of carboxymethylcellulose as a specific desorbens for cellulose bound CM-cellulase and -glucosidase it was found that these enzymes are cell wall bound during consumption of the carbon source, but are excreted during the subsequent cultivation stage. Treatment of intact cell walls with various chemical agents could not cause a release of the enzyme. Treatment of intact cell walls with -mannanase or trypsin released CM-cellulase, whereas, treatment with laminarinase or chitinase released -glucosidase. Both enzymes were also released during autolysis in phosphate buffer. This autolysis was accompanined by the appearance of extracellular mannanase, laminarinase and proteinase. The results suggest that cleavage of chemical bonds of certain cell wall polymers of T. reesei could be responsible for the appearance of CM-cellulase and -glucosidase in the culture fluid during later stages of growth.     

High expression of a neutral endo-β-glucanase gene from Humicola insolens in Trichoderma reesei

The neutral endo-β-glucanase gene cel5A from Humicola insolens was cloned and connected with the cellobiohydrolase 1 promoter from Trichoderma reesei to construct a recombinant plasmid pCB-hEG with the hygromycin B resistance marker. The plasmid was introduced into conidia of T. reesei using the Agrobacterium tumefaciens mediated transformation method. Eight transformants were obtained on screening plates with sodium carboxymethyl cellulose as the sole carbon source. Stable integration of the cel5A gene into the chromosomal DNA of T. reesei was confirmed by PCR. An obvious protein band (approximately 52 kDa) was detected by SDS-PAGE from fermentation broth, which showed that the cel5A gene in recombinant T. reesei successfully fulfilled efficient expression and extracellular secretion. After 96 h shaking-flask fermentation, the endo-β-glucanase activity at pH 6.5 from recombinant T. reesei reached 3,068 U/ml, which was 11 times higher than that of the host strain. In a 2 m³ fermenter, the endo-β-glucanase activity could be further increased to 8,012 U/ml after 96 h fermentation. The results showed a good prospect for application of neutral endo-β-glucanase in the textile industry.     

Cold adaptation of a mesophilic cellulase, EG III from Trichoderma reesei, by directed evolution

Cold-active enzymes have received little research attention although they are very useful in industries. Since the structure bases of cold adaptation of enzymes are still unclear, it is also very difficult to obtain cold-adapted enzymes for industrial applications using routine protein engineering methods. In this work, we employed directed evolution method to randomly mutate a mesophilic cellulase, endoglucanase III (EG III) from Trichoderma reesei, and obtained a cold adapted mutant, designated as w-3. DNA sequence analysis indicates that w-3 is a truncated form of native EG III with a deletion of 25 consecutive amino acids at C-terminus. Further examination of enzymatic kinetics and thermal stability shows that mutant w-3 has a higher K_cat value and becomes Fmore thermolabile than its parent. In addition, activation energies of w-3 and wild type EG III calculated from Arrhenius equation are 13.3 kJ · mol^t-1 and 26.2 kJ · mol^t-1, respectively. Therefore, the increased specific activity of w-3 at lower temperatures could result from increased K_cat value and decreased activation energy.     

里氏木霉纤维素酶的分离纯化及酶学性质

通过(NH4)2SO4分级沉淀、HiPrep 26/10 Desalting凝胶色谱脱盐、Source 15 Q阴离子交换色谱技术,里氏木霉(Rut C-30)纤维素酶主要组分得以初步分开,再经过Source 15 S阳离子交换色谱、HiPrep Sephacryl S-100 HR凝胶过滤色谱、Superdex 75 PrepGrade凝胶过滤色谱进一步分离纯化,得到2个纯化的内切葡聚糖酶组分EGⅡ、EGⅠ和一个外切葡聚糖酶组分CBHⅠ;经过SDS-PAGE电泳鉴定为电泳纯,测得相对分子质量分别为5.22×104,5.62×104和6.90×104。EGⅡ的最适反应pH是5.6,最适反应温度为65℃;EGⅠ的最适反应pH是4.4,最适反应温度为55℃;以羧甲基纤维素(CMC)为底物时,EGⅠ、EGⅡ的米氏常数(Km)分别为2.20 mg/mL、3.38 mg/mL。CBHⅠ的最适反应pH是5.8,最适反应温度为60℃,以对硝基苯基-β-D-纤维二糖苷(PNPC)为底物时,米氏常数(Km)为0.12 mg/mL。     

里氏木霉Trichoderma reesei产纤维素酶的发酵培养基碳氮源优化

研究C、N源对里氏木霉(Trichoderma reesei)生产纤维素酶的影响,采用单因素实验方法和中心复合方法对发酵培养基进行优化。单因素实验表明:黄豆饼粉、玉米芯、玉米浆对纤维素酶的影响显著。通过响应面优化,得到最优培养基C、N源的组成:黄豆饼粉32.21 g/L,玉米芯42.29 g/L,玉米浆4.45 g/L。优化条件下,摇瓶发酵7 d的比酶活达到(10.65±0.50)U/mL。     

Stimulatory effect of oxidized cellulose on cellulase formation by Trichoderma reesei

Crystalline cellulase has been electrochemically oxidized to yield preparations containing various different percentages of oxidized end-groups. These celluloses have been used as carbon sources for growth and cellulase production by Trichoderma reesei . A low content of oxidized end groups in the celluloses (0.1–0.65%) stimulated cellulase production but not growth, whereas higher contents (> 1%) where inhibitory to both. The cellulolytic enzyme system secreted under stimulated conditions contained the same proportion of individual cellulase enzymes (cellobiohydrolase I and II, endoglucanase I) as the control, indicating a general stimulatory effect of oxidized cellulose. Activity of cellulases against oxidized celluloses in vitro was not stimulated, and only slightly inhibitory at high degrees of oxidation. The data support a potential role of cellulose oxidation in regulating cellulase formation by T. reesei .     

Cellulose-binding domain of endoglucanase III from Trichoderma reesei disrupting the structure of cellulose

The DNA fragment encoding the cellulose binding domain of endoglucanase III (CBD_{EG III}) from Trichoderma reesei was subcloned and expressed in E. coli. The CBD_{EG III} had a high affinity for cellulose. The morphological and structural changes of cellulose after treatment with CBD_{EG III} indicated a 17% decrease in number of hydrogen bonds and a 16.5% decrease in crystalline index. X-ray diffraction and IR spectra analyses indicated that the destabilization and breakage of the hydrogen bonds in crystalline cellulose accounted for the non-hydrolytic disruption of the structure of cellulose.     

Enhanced cellulase production in fed-batch culture of Trichoderma reesei C30

The use of a fed-batch cultivation of the fungus Trichoderma reesei (C30) allows cellulase [see 1,4-(1,3;1,4)-β-d-glucan 4-glucanohydrolase, EC 3.2.1.4] production to occur under optimum conditions, and results in extremely high enzyme titres and productivities. Enzyme levels of 26 U ml^?1 at productivities >130 U l^?1 h^?1 have been achieved. These results are compared with the values obtained in two-stage continuous cultivation of the organism at optimum pH and temperature.     

定点突变提高里氏木霉木聚糖酶 (XYN II) 的稳定性

通过定点突变的方法,在来源于里氏木霉Trichderma reesei的木聚糖酶XYN II的N-末端两个β折叠片层间添加二硫键,以提高木聚糖酶的稳定性。原酶XYN-OU和突变酶XYN-HA12 (T2C、T28C和S156F) 分别在毕赤酵母中分泌表达,突变酶与原酶纯化后进行酶学性质比较。结果表明：突变酶最适反应温度由50℃提高到60℃;在70℃的半衰期由1 min提高到14 min;最适反应pH为5.0,与原酶保持一致,但是在50℃、30 min条件下的pH稳定范围由4.0~9.0扩展到3.0~10.0。对木聚糖酶分子改良的结果反映出在β片层间添加二硫键可以有效改善酶在较高温度下三维结构的刚性,提高热稳定性。     

里氏木霉与米根霉混合固态发酵产纤维素酶

以里氏木霉及米根霉单菌固态发酵为对象,考察不同混合发酵形式对里氏木霉与米根霉混合固态发酵产纤维素酶的影响。结果表明:同时接种里氏木霉与米根霉,试验考察的两菌种接种量比1∶1(以孢子个数计)及5∶1条件下,两菌未产生明显协同产酶作用。米根霉延时(24 h)接种且菌种量比5∶1以及米根霉延时(48 h)接种且菌种量比1∶1,2种发酵形式产酶情况类似,滤纸酶活(FPA)及羧甲基纤维素酶(CMCase)酶活相对米根霉单菌发酵有所提高,而β-葡萄糖苷酶(β-GA)酶活相对里氏木霉单菌固态发酵结束时分别增加4.66及4.40倍,可以发现两菌产生一定协同作用。在米根霉延时(48 h)接种且菌种量比5∶1的发酵形式下,FPA及CMCase在发酵第7天酶活分别达到44.04 IU/g、627.14 U/g(以1 g干曲计),分别是里氏木霉固态单菌发酵产酶达到稳定期时酶活的1.36和1.63倍,两菌产生了有效的协同作用。     

里氏木霉表达异源中性内切纤维素酶蛋白以改善最佳酶活pH

为了提高里氏木霉中天然纤维素酶的最佳活性pH,本实验从特异腐质霉,灰腐质霉的变种,枯草芽孢杆菌LH中分别筛选并克隆了其含有的中性纤维素酶基因,将其置于里氏木霉cbh1启动子的启动下,在里氏木霉中进行异源表达。改造株在pH 6.0下酶活提升16%,pH 7.0下活性保留75%以上,而此时原始菌酶活残留20%。本实验所得的产中性纤维素酶里氏木霉基因改造株,由于其良好的中酸性活性表现,在食品,纺织,纸浆和造纸行业应也有良好的使用潜力。