Purification and Some Properties of a New Levanase from Bacillus sp. No. 71

A levanase from Bacillus sp. was purified to a homogeneous state. The enzyme had a molecular weight of 135,000 and an isoelectric point of pH 4.7. The enzyme was most active at pH 6.0 and 40°C, stable from pH 6.0 to 10.0 for 20 hr of incubation at 4°C and up to 30°C for 30 min of incubation at pH 6.0. The enzyme activity was inhibited by Ag ⁺, Hg^{2 +}, Cu^{2 +}, Fe^{3 +}, Pb²⁺, and p-chloromercuribenzoic acid. The enzyme hydrolyzed levan and phlein endowise to produce levanheptaose as a main product. The limit of hydrolysis of levan and phlein were 71% and 96%, respectively.     

Isolation and Characterization of a Novel Endo-β-galactofuranosidase from Bacillus sp.

A soil bacterium capable of growing on a polysaccharide containing β(1→6)galactofuranoside residues derived from the acidic polysaccharide of Fusarium sp. as a carbon source has been isolated. From various bacteriological characteristics, the organism was identified as a Bacillus sp. The bacterium produced β- galactofuranosidase inductively in the culture media. The most effective inducer for the β-galactofuranosidase production was a polysaccharide containing β(1→5) or β(1→6)-linked galactofuranoside residues, but gum arabic, gum guar, gum ghati, arabinogalactam, araban, and pectic acid did not induce the enzyme. The enzyme had three different molecular weight forms. The low molecular-weight form was purified by a combination of Toyopearl HW-55 and DEAE-Toyopearl 650S column chromatographies, and preparative polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The molecular weight of the enzyme was estimated to be 67,000 by SDS–polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The enzyme was most active at pH 6 and 37°C, and was stable between pH 4 to 8 at 5°C. The action of the enzyme was inhibited by the addition of Cd²⁺, Co²⁺, Hg²⁺, Zn²⁺, iodoacetic acid, and EDT A. The purified enzyme cleaved β(1→5) and β(1→6)-linked galactofuranosyl chains. Based upon the mode of liberation of galactofuranosyl residues from pyridylamino β(1→6)-linked galactofuranoside oligomers, the enzyme can be classified as an endo-β-galactofuranosidase that randomly hydrolyzes the linkage.     

Selection of High Ubiquinone 10-Producing Strain of Tobacco Cultured Cells by Cell Cloning Technique

A novel enzyme, which was named N^α-benzyloxycarbonyl amino acid urethane hydrolase, was purified from a cell-free extract of Streptococcus faecalis R ATCC 8043, using N^α-benzyloxycarbonyl glycine as substrate. The enzyme was purified 1300-fold with an activity yield of 8%. The purified enzyme was homogeneous by disc electrophoresis. The molecular weight of the native enzyme is about 220,000 by gel filtration, and a molecular weight of 32,000 was determined for the reduced and denatured enzyme by gel electrophoresis in sodium dodecyl sulfate. The isoelectric point was 4.48. The enzyme was inhibited by p-chloromercuribenzoate. The presence of divalent cations (i.e., Co²⁺ or Zn²⁺) is essential for its activity.     

The effect of metal ions on the alkaline phosphatase of Rhizobium leguminosarum

The alkaline phosphatase (EC 3.1.3.1.) from Rhizobium leguminosarum WU235 has been purified. The enzyme is a non-specific phosphomonoesterase, has a molecular weight of 78,500 and a sub-unit molecular weight of 39,400. Magnesium and zinc ions are implicated in the structure of the enzyme; atomic absorption analysis gave 1.9 g-atoms Mg²⁺ and 1.9–5.1 g-atoms Zn²⁺ per mole of enzyme. In addition high concentrations of Mg²⁺ markedly stimulate the enzyme. The phosphatase is inhibited by Li⁺ and Na⁺ and stimulated by K⁺, Rb⁺ and Cs⁺, which suggests that the enzyme is K⁺ activated.     

A novel thermostable and halostable carboxymethylcellulase from marine bacterium <Emphasis Type="Italic">Bacillus licheniformis</Emphasis>AU01

A novel thermostable, halostable carboxymethylcellulase (CMCase) from a marine bacterium Bacillus licheniformisAU01 was purified 10.4-fold with 18% yield with a specific activity of 88.43 U/mg and the molecular weight was estimated as 37 kDa. The enzyme was optimally active at pH 9–10 and temperature 50–60°C and it was most stable up to pH 12 and 20–30% of NaCl concentration. The enzyme activity was reduced when treated with Hg²⁺, Fe²⁺ and EDTA and stimulated by Co²⁺, Mn²⁺, Mg²⁺ and Ca²⁺. Various cationic, anionic detergents and commercial detergents were not much affected CMCase activity.     

Purification and characterization of a novel phytase from Nocardia sp. MB 36

Phytase from Nocardia sp. MB 36 was purified (9.65-fold) to homogeneity by acetone precipitation, ion exchange, and molecular sieve chromatography. Native polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) and zymogram analysis showed a single active protein in the purified enzyme preparation. Sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-PAGE analysis showed that phytase was a monomeric protein with a molecular weight of approximately 43 kDa. Phytase exhibited activity and stability over a broad pH range (2–8) and elevated temperatures (50–80°C), and utilized several phosphate compounds as substrates. Phytase was extremely resistant to pepsin and trypsin. Various metal ions viz. Fe²⁺, Co²⁺, and Mn²⁺, and NH₄⁺, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid or EDTA and phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride or PMSF had no influence on activity, while Ca²⁺ and Zn²⁺ enhanced activity by 15 % and 3.58 %, respectively. SDS caused significant reduction in enzyme activity (41.8 %), while 2,3-butanedione did so moderately (15.9 %). Features of Nocardia sp. MB 36 phytase suggest a potential for animal feed applications.     

A novel serine alkaline protease from Bacillus altitudinis GVC11 and its application as a dehairing agent

A serine alkaline protease from a newly isolated alkaliphilic Bacillus altitudinis GVC11 was purified and characterized. The enzyme was purified to homogeneity by acetone precipitation, DEAE-cellulose anion exchange chromatography with 7.03-fold increase in specific activity and 15.25% recovery. The molecular weight of alkaline protease was estimated to be 28 kDa by SDS PAGE and activity was further assessed by zymogram analysis. The enzyme was highly active over a wide range of pH 8.5 to 12.5 with an optimum pH of 9.5. The optimum temperature of purified enzyme was 45 °C and Ca²⁺ further increased the thermal stability of the enzyme. The enzyme activity was enhanced by Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺ and inhibited by Hg²⁺. The present study is the first report to examine and describe production of highly alkaline protease from Bacillus altitudinis and also its remarkable dehairing ability of goat hide in 18 h without disturbing the collagen and hair integrity.     

Purification and properties of glutamine synthetase from the archaebacterium Halobacterium salinarium

Glutamine synthetase (GS) was purified to electrophoretic homogeneity from the halophilic archaebacterium Halobacterium salinarium. The enzyme was purified 300-fold to homogeneity with 30% yield. By gel filtration and SDS gel electrophoresis, it was shown that the enzyme has a native molecular weight of 495,000 and a subunit molecular weight of 62,000. This indicates an octameric quaternary structure. The amino acid composition and the isoelectric point of 4.9 are similar to other GSs. The enzyme shows highest stability in 4 M NaCl or KCl and at temperatures up to 45°C. Lower salt concentrations or higher temperatures lead to rapid and irreversible denaturation. By low concentrations of Mg²⁺ or Mn²⁺, the salt dependence was decreased and the thermostability increased. Mg²⁺ or Mn²⁺ are essential cofactors. The two resulting activities show differences in pH and salt concentrations required for optimal activity, different K _m-values and different sensitivity to inhibition by amino acids. The enzyme is not adenylylated like the GS from some eubacteria but cytidylylated. The covalently bound CMP increases Mn²⁺-and Mg²⁺-dependent activities at a different extent.     

Purification and Properties of a Chromobacterium Lipase with a High Molecular Weight

A lipase with a high molecular weight was purified from Chromobacterium viscosum by chromatography using the Amberlite CG–50 and Sephadex G–75. The purified lipase (Lipase A) was found to be homogeneous by disc electrophoresis.

Lipase A had an optimum pH around 7 for lipolysis of olive oil and the enzyme was stable at the range of pH 4 to 9 and below 50°C. Zn²⁺, Cu²⁺, Fe³⁺ and high concentrations of l-cysteine, iodoacetic acid and NBS had remarkable inhibitory effects. Bile salts were activator. Lipase A was more active on water insoluble esters than water soluble esters. The isoelectric point of the enzyme was pH 4.7.     

Production and characterization of extracellular protease of mutant Aspergillus niger AB100 grown on fish scale

Fish scale, the chief waste material of fish processing industries was processed and tested for production of extracellular protease by mutant Aspergillus niger AB₁₀₀. Protease production by A. niger AB₁₀₀ was greatly enhanced in presence of processed fish scale powder. Where as among the three complex nutrients tested, soya bean meal shows maximum stimulatory effect over protease production (2,776 μmol/ml/min) when used in combination with glucose (5% w/v) and urea (2.5% w/v). The protease was optimally active at pH 7.0, retaining more than 60% of its activity in the pH range of 5–9. The enzyme was found to be most active at 50°C and stable at 30°C for 1 h. Purification of enzyme by CM-Cellulose and SDS-PAGE resulted in about 26-fold increase in the specific activity of the enzyme with a molecular weight of 30.9 kDa. HPLC study shows the purity of the enzyme as 75.92%. By the activating effect of divalent cations (Fe²⁺, Zn²⁺, Mn²⁺, Ca²⁺and Mg²⁺) and inhibiting effect of chelating agent (EDTA) and Hg²⁺, the enzyme was found to be a metalloprotease.     

Purification and Properties of Pyranose Oxidase from Coriolus versicolor

Coriolus versicolor KY2912 grown on a medium containing glucose, sucrose or glycerol produced pyranose oxidase. Pyranose oxidase (glucose-2-oxidase) was purified by HPA-75 chromatography, Sepharose 4B and Sephadex G-100 gel filtration, and hydroxyapatite chromatography. The purified enzyme preparation showed a single protein band on acrylamide gel electrophoresis. The highest activity was obtained when D-glucose was employed as substrate and molecular oxygen as electron acceptor. The enzyme was most active at pH 6.2 and 50°C, stable in the pH region between 5.0 and 7.4, and the activity was completely lost above 70°C. The activity was inhibited by Ag⁺ , Cu²⁺ and PCMB. The enzyme contained FAD covalently bound to the polypeptide chain. The enzyme consisted of identical subunits with a molecular weight of 68,000, and showed a total molecular weight of 220,000.     

Purification and Some Properties of Dipeptidyl Carboxypeptidase from Bacillus pumilus

An intracellular protease from a bacterium, Bacillus pumilus HL721, was purified about 5000-fold by Chromatography with a Q-Sepharose Fast Flow column, TSK-gel HA-1000 glass column, and TSK-gel G3000SWXL column using Bz-Gly-Ala-Pro as a substrate. The enzyme was the most active at pH around 7.5 and stable from 4.5 and 8.0. The enzyme activity was inhibited by Cu²⁺, EDTA, N-ethylmaleimide, o-phenanthroline, and p-chloromercuribenzoic acid. The molecular weight of the enzyme was 155,000 by gel filtration. The enzyme removed dipeptide from the carboxyl end of some peptides used as substrates. From these results the enzyme seems to be a dipeptidyl carboxypeptidase.     

Protocatechuate 3,4-Dioxygenase from Nocardia erythropolis†

Protocatechuate 3,4-dioxygenase was isolated from a gram-positive bacterium, Nocardia erythropolis, the enzyme participates in the phthalate ester metabolism in the bacterium. Cultural conditions for production of the enzyme, the purification procedure, and some properties of the enzyme were studied. A bouillon (beef) medium was the most effective among those tested for cell growth and enzyme formation. The effect was due to the ring closure type of creatine compounds. Protocatechuate 3,4-dioxygenase was purified from the cell-free extract ca. 1,400-fold and it gave a single band on polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The molecular weight was estimated to be ca. 150,000. The optimal pH and temperature were pH 8.0 and 40°C, respectively. The enzyme was stable in a pH range from 7.6 to 8.6 and below 42°C. The enzyme was inhibited by several metals such as Pb²⁺ , Cd²⁺ and Hg²⁺ . The enzyme was active on a wide range of o-dihydroxyphenyl compounds, in contrast to the high specificity of similar enzymes from gram-negative bacteria (Pseudomonas). The enzyme had a broad absorption band in the visible region with a peak around 450 nm, suggesting the presence of non-heme ion(s) bound to the enzyme as a cofactor. The spectrum changed markedly upon addition of the substrate, possibly showing the formation of an enzyme-substrate complex.     

Isolation of Sclerosporin,a Sporogenic Substance,from Sclerotinia fructicola

The folate-hydrolyzing enzyme was purified 49-fold from the crude extract of Crithidia fasciculata ATCC 12857 by heat treatment, column chromatographies on DEAE-cellulose and Sephadex G-200, and preparative polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The final preparation was electrophoretically homogeneous. The enzyme had a molecular weight of 200,000 daltons and consisted of 4 identical subunits of which the molecular weight was about 51,000 daltons. The enzyme hydrolyzed aminopterin, methotrexate, and pABG more effectively than folate. The enzyme hydrolyzed the reduced folates, dihydrofolate and 10-formyltetrahydrofolate, more weakly than folate. The enzyme did not act on pteroly-γ,γ-diglutamylglutamate. The optimum pH for the reaction with each substrate described above was 7.0. Km values for folate, methotrexate, aminopterin, and pABG were 0.13, 0.46, 0.40, and 0.43 mM, respectively. The enzyme activity was inhibited by 2-mercaptoethanol, pCMB, chelating reagents such as α,α′α′′-tripyridyl and bathophenanthroline, divalent cations such as Hg²⁺, Cu^{2 +}, Cd²⁺, Pb²⁺, and Zn²⁺, and by pyrophosphate and orthophosphate.     

Isolation and characterization of a manganese-stimulated exonuclease fromBacillus subtilis

A manganese-stimulated exonuclease was purified from culture fluids ofBacillus subtilis 168 using ammonium sulfate fractionation, SephadexG-150 gel filtration, and DEAE-Sephadex ion-exchange chromatography. This extracellular nuclease was found to attain maximal activity in the presence of 5 mM Mn²⁺. Little or no activity was demonstrated in the presence of Fe²⁺, Mg²⁺, Zn²⁺, Cu²⁺, or Ni²⁺, but the nuclease was somewhat active with Ca²⁺. The nuclease exhibited a broad pH range, with maximum activity at pH 8.5. A molecular weight of 214,000 was calculated for the protein using Sephacryl S-300 columm chromatography. Incubation of the enzyme with the closed circular DNA of plasmid pUB110 indicated that the nuclease is strictly, exonucleolytic in nature.     

Purification and Properties of Phospholipase D from Actinomadura sp. Strain No. 362

An extracellular phospholipase D from Actinomadura sp. Strain No. 362 was purified about 430-fold from the culture filtrate. The purified enzyme preparation was judged to be homogeneous on polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. The molecular weight and isoelectric point of the enzyme were estimated to be about 50,000—60,000 and 6.4, respectively. The enzyme was most active at pH 5.5 and 50°C in the presence of Triton X-100, but showed the highest activity at pH 7.0 and 60 — 70°C in its absence. The enzyme was stable up to 30°C at pH 7.2 and also stable in the pH range of 4.0 to 8.0 on 2 hr incubation at 25°C. With regard to substrate specificity, this enzyme hydrolysed lecithin best among the phospholipids tested. It was activated by Fe^{3 +}, Al³⁺, Mn^{2 +}, Ca^{2 +}, diethyl ether, sodium deoxycholate and Triton X-100, but was inhibited by cetyl pyridinium chloride and dodecylsulfate.     

Characterization of d-Alanyl-(d)-meso-2,6-diaminopimelic Acid Endopeptidase from Streptomyces globisporus 1829

d-Alanyl-(d)-meso-2,6-diaminopimelic acid endopeptidase was purified 47.4-fold with a yield of 40.5% from mutanolysin, which was partially purified from the cultural supernatant of Streptomyces globisporus 1829, by using ion exchange column chromatographies and a molecular sieve column. The purified enzyme was electrophoretically homogeneous. This enzyme had a molecular weight of 13,500 and an isoelectric point of pI 9.0. This enzyme was most active at pH 8.5 and stable between pHs 8.0 and 9.0. The hydrolyzing activity of this enzyme was enhanced by Co^{+ +} and Ca^{+ +} but inhibited appreciably by Zn^{+ +}, Cu^{+ +} and EDTA. The enzyme activity was not affected by β-lactam antibiotics and vancomycin. The Km values for bisdisaccharide heptapeptide and its derivative modified chemically by BOC-S were calculated to be 5.7 × 10^-4 and 4.0 × 10^-4 m, respectively.     

Properties of Choline Oxidase of Cylindrocarpon didymum M-1

Choline oxidase from the cell-free extract of Cylindrocarpon didymum M-1 showed a molecular weight of 120,000 by the gel filtration method and 145,000 by the sedimentation velocity method. The enzyme exhibited an absorption spectrum characteristic of a flavoprotein with absorption maxima at 276, 370 and 454 nm and a shoulder at 470 nm. Anaerobic addition of choline as well as sodium dithionite to the enzyme produced a disappearance of the peak at 454 nm.

Choline oxidase consists of two identical subunits, which have a molecular weight of 64,000, and contains two mol of FAD per mol of enzyme. The flavin was shown to be covalently bound to the protein.

The enzyme was inactivated by Ag⁺, Hg²⁺, Cu²⁺ and Zn²⁺. The enzyme oxidized choline, betaine aldehyde and N, N-dimethylaminoethanol and apparent Km values were 1.3 mm, 5.8 mm and 14 mm, respectively.     

Purification and Properties of Hypoxanthine Phosphoribosyltransferase from Streptomyces cyanogenus

Hypoxanthine phosphoribosyltransferase (EC 2.4.2.8) of a strain of Streptomyces cyanogenus was purified 1,900-fold to an apparent homogenity from cell-free extracts. The enzyme had a molecular weight of 150,000 and consisted of eight identical subunits with a molecular weight of 18,000. The isoelectric point was at pH 4.4. The enzyme required Mg²⁺ or Ma²⁺ for activity and had a pH optimum at 8.5. Hypoxanthine and guanine were good substrates for the enzyme. Xanthine was a very poor substrate and adenine was not a substrate. Apparent Km values of the enzyme for hypoxanthine, guanine and 5-phosphoribose-1-pyro-phosphate were 1.6 × 10^?8, 2.7 × 10^?6 and 6.3 × 10^?5 m, respectively. All purine nucleotides tested inhibited the activity significantly, apparently by competing with 5-phosphoribose-1-pyrophosphate.     

Isolation of a Psychrotrophic <Emphasis Type="Italic">Exiguobacterium</Emphasis> sp. SKPB5 (MTCC 7803) and Characterization of Its Alkaline Protease

Out of nine psychrotrophic bacterial strains isolated from cold environments of the Western Himalayas, SKPB5 was selected for protease purification and characterization because it had the largest zone of clearance on plate assay. On the basis of the phenotypic and biochemical characterization and 16S rRNA gene-sequencing studies, isolate was identified as Exiguobacterium sp. SKPB5. The protease was purified near to homogeneity with a purification fold of 7.1, and its molecular weight was determined to be 36 kDa. The enzyme exhibited maximum stability at 50°C and an optimal pH of 8.0. Metal ions Mg²⁺, Ca²⁺, Zn²⁺, and Mn²⁺ enhanced the enzyme activity, whereas Cu²⁺ had no effect. Phenylmethanesulfonyl fluoride and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid did not show any effect on the activity of the enzyme, whereas a 20% increase in activity was observed when it was incubated in presence of reducing agents such as β-mercaptoethanol and dithiothreitol. This suggests that the protease isolated from psychrotrophic Exiguobacterium sp. SKPB5 belongs to the cysteine family. The results highlight the relevance of unexplored microbes from cold environments of Western Himalayas for the isolation of protease enzymes active at wide range of temperature and pH.