Conversion of xylan to ethanol by ethanologenic strains of Escherichia coli and Klebsiella oxytoca.

A two-stage process was evaluated for the fermentation of polymeric feedstocks to ethanol by a single, genetically engineered microorganism. The truncated xylanase gene (xynZ) from the thermophilic bacterium Clostridium thermocellum was fused with the N terminus of lacZ to eliminate secretory signals. This hybrid gene was expressed at high levels in ethanologenic strains of Escherichia coli KO11 and Klebsiella oxytoca M5A1(pLOI555). Large amounts of xylanase (25 to 93 mU/mg of cell protein) accumulated as intracellular products during ethanol production. Cells containing xylanase were harvested at the end of fermentation and added to a xylan solution at 60 degrees C, thereby releasing xylanase for saccharification. After cooling, the hydrolysate was fermented to ethanol with the same organism (30 degrees C), thereby replenishing the supply of xylanase for a subsequent saccharification. Recombinant E. coli metabolized only xylose, while recombinant K. oxytoca M5A1 metabolized xylose, xylobiose, and xylotriose but not xylotetrose. Derivatives of this latter organism produced large amounts of intracellular xylosidase, and the organism is presumed to transport both xylobiose and xylotriose for intracellular hydrolysis. By using recombinant M5A1, approximately 34% of the maximal theoretical yield of ethanol was obtained from xylan by this two-stage process. The yield appeared to be limited by the digestibility of commercial xylan rather than by a lack of sufficient xylanase or by ethanol toxicity. In general form, this two-stage process, which uses a single, genetically engineered microorganism, should be applicable for the production of useful chemicals from a wide range of biomass polymers.     

Construction of a xylan-fermenting yeast strain through codisplay of xylanolytic enzymes on the surface of xylose-utilizing Saccharomyces cerevisiae cells

Hemicellulose is one of the major forms of biomass in lignocellulose, and its essential component is xylan. We used a cell surface engineering system based on alpha-agglutinin to construct a Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast strain codisplaying two types of xylan-degrading enzymes, namely, xylanase II (XYNII) from Trichoderma reesei QM9414 and beta-xylosidase (XylA) from Aspergillus oryzae NiaD300, on the cell surface. In a high-performance liquid chromatography analysis, xylose was detected as the main product of the yeast strain codisplaying XYNII and XylA, while xylobiose and xylotriose were detected as the main products of a yeast strain displaying XYNII on the cell surface. These results indicate that xylan is sequentially hydrolyzed to xylose by the codisplayed XYNII and XylA. In a further step toward achieving the simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of xylan, a xylan-utilizing S. cerevisiae strain was constructed by codisplaying XYNII and XylA and introducing genes for xylose utilization, namely, those encoding xylose reductase and xylitol dehydrogenase from Pichia stipitis and xylulokinase from S. cerevisiae. After 62 h of fermentation, 7.1 g of ethanol per liter was directly produced from birchwood xylan, and the yield in terms of grams of ethanol per gram of carbohydrate consumed was 0.30 g/g. These results demonstrate that the direct conversion of xylan to ethanol is accomplished by the xylan-utilizing S. cerevisiae strain.     

Purification and characterization of two xylanases from Trichoderma longibrachiatum.

Two endoxylanases were purified from the culture medium of Trichoderma longibrachiatum. Both enzymes were highly basic, and lacked activity on carboxymethyl-cellulose. An enzyme of 21.5 kDa (xylanase A) had a specific activity of 510 U/mg protein, a Km of 0.15 mg soluble xylan/ml, possessed transglycosidase activity and generated xylobiose and xylotriose as the major endproducts from xylan or xylose oligomers. A larger enzyme of 33 kDa (xylanase B) had a specific activity of 131 U/mg protein, a Km of 0.19 mg soluble xylan/ml, lacked detectable transglycosidase activity and generated xylobiose and xylose as major endproducts from xylan and xylose oligomers. Xylotriose was the smallest oligomer attacked by both enzymes. In addition, xylotriose inhibited hydrolysis of xylopentanose by both enzymes, while xylobiose appeared to inhibit xylanase B, but not xylanase A.     

Construction of a Xylan-Fermenting Yeast Strain through Codisplay of Xylanolytic Enzymes on the Surface of Xylose-Utilizing Saccharomyces cerevisiae Cells

Hemicellulose is one of the major forms of biomass in lignocellulose, and its essential component is xylan. We used a cell surface engineering system based on α-agglutinin to construct a Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast strain codisplaying two types of xylan-degrading enzymes, namely, xylanase II (XYNII) from Trichoderma reesei QM9414 and β-xylosidase (XylA) from Aspergillus oryzae NiaD300, on the cell surface. In a high-performance liquid chromatography analysis, xylose was detected as the main product of the yeast strain codisplaying XYNII and XylA, while xylobiose and xylotriose were detected as the main products of a yeast strain displaying XYNII on the cell surface. These results indicate that xylan is sequentially hydrolyzed to xylose by the codisplayed XYNII and XylA. In a further step toward achieving the simultaneous saccharification and fermentation of xylan, a xylan-utilizing S. cerevisiae strain was constructed by codisplaying XYNII and XylA and introducing genes for xylose utilization, namely, those encoding xylose reductase and xylitol dehydrogenase from Pichia stipitis and xylulokinase from S. cerevisiae. After 62 h of fermentation, 7.1 g of ethanol per liter was directly produced from birchwood xylan, and the yield in terms of grams of ethanol per gram of carbohydrate consumed was 0.30 g/g. These results demonstrate that the direct conversion of xylan to ethanol is accomplished by the xylan-utilizing S. cerevisiae strain.     

The recombinant xylanase B of Thermotoga maritima is highly xylan specific and produces exclusively xylobiose from xylans, a unique character for industrial applications

The xynB of a hyperthermophilic Eubacterium, Thermotoga maritima MSB8, coding xylanase B (XynB) was previously expressed in E. coli and the recombinant protein was characterized using the synthetic substrates [J. Biosci. Bioeng. 92 (2001) 423]. In this study, the same xylanase B was purified to homogeneity with a recovery yield of about 43% using heat treatment followed by the Ni-NTA affinity chromatography. The specificity of XynB towards different natural substrates was evaluated. XynB was highly specific towards xylans tested but exhibited low activities towards lichenan (19%), gellan gum (7.3%), laminarin (3.4%) and carboxymethylcellulose (CMC, 1.4%). The apparent K_m values of birchwood xylan and soluble oat-spelt xylan was 0.11 and 0.079 mg/ml, respectively. The XynB hydrolyzed xylooligosaccharides to yield predominantly xylobiose (X₂) and a small amount of xylose (X₁), suggesting that XynB was possibly an endo-acting xylanase. Analysis of the products from birchwood xylan degradation confirmed that the enzyme was an endo-xylanase with xylobiose and xylose as the main degradation products. HPLC results showed that hydrolyzed products of birchwood xylan by XynB yielded up to 66% of the total reaction product as xylobiose. These results clearly indicated that xylobiose could be mass-produced efficiently by the recombinant hyperthermostable XynB of T. maritima. Additionally, conversion of xylobiose (50 mM) to xylose was observed, while xylotriose (X₃) and xylotetraose (X₄) were detected in small amounts, indicating that the enzyme converted xylobiose to xylose based on the transglycosylation reaction. The increased binding ability of XynB to Avicel and/or insoluble xylan was also observed indicating the possibilities of roles of surface-aromatic amino acid residues for such action. However, further investigations are required to prove this speculation.     

Induction of cellulase and hemicellulase activities of Thermoascus aurantiacus by xylan hydrolyzed products

Thermoascus aurantiacus is able to secrete most of the hemicellulolytic and cellulolytic enzymes. To establish the xylanase inducers of T. aurantiacus, the mycelia were first grown on glucose up until the end of the exponential growth phase, followed by washing and re-suspension in a basal medium without a carbon source. Pre-weighed amounts of xylose (final concentration of 3.5 mg/ml), xylobiose (7 mg/ml) and hydrolyzed xylan from sugarcane bagasse (HXSB) which contained xylose, xylobiose and xylotriose (6.8 mg/ml) were evaluated as inducers of xylanase. It was observed that xylose did not suppress enzyme induction of T. aurantiacus when used in low concentrations, regardless of whether it was inoculated with xylobiose. Xylobiose promoted fast enzyme production stopping after 10 h, even at a low consumption rate of the carbon source; therefore xylobiose appears to be the natural inducer of xylanase. In HXSB only a negligible xylanase activity was determined. Xylose present in HXSB was consumed within the first 10 h while xylobiose was partially hydrolyzed at a slow rate. The profile of α-arabinofuranosidase induction was very similar in media induced with xylobiose or HXSB, but induction with xylose showed some positive effects as well. The production profile for the xylanase was accompanied by low levels of cellulolytic activity. In comparison, growth in HXSB resulted in different profiles of both xylanase and cellulase production, excluding the possibility of xylanase acting as endoglucanases.     

Bioconversion of Xylan to Triglycerides by Oil-Rich Yeasts

A series of lipid-accumulating yeasts was examined for their potential to saccharify xylan and accumulate triglyceride. Of the genera tested, including Candida, Cryptococcus, Lipomyces, Rhodosporidium, Rhodotorula, and Trichosporon, only Cryptococcus and Trichosporon isolates saccharified xylan. All of the strains could assimilate xylose and accumuate triglyceride under nitrogen-limiting conditions. Strains of Cryptococcus albidus were found to be especially useful for a one-step saccharification of xylan coupled to triglyceride synthesis. Cryptococcus terricolus, a strain constitutive for lipid accumulation, lacked extracellular xylanase, but did assimilate xylose and xylobiose and was able to continuously convert xylan to triglyceride if the culture medium was supplemented with xylanase.     

绵毛嗜热丝孢菌木聚糖酶的纯化与性质

研究了绵毛嗜热丝孢菌Thermomyces lanuginosus W205胞外木聚糖酶的纯化与性质。粗酶液经硫酸铵沉淀和Q-Sepharose FF离子交换层析即可得到电泳纯木聚糖酶,回收率为46.6%,比酶活为1396.9U/mg。该酶的最适pH和最适温度分别为pH7.0和75℃,pH稳定范围为5.5-10.8,70℃处理30min残存酶活在70%以上。薄层层析结果显示该酶水解桦木木聚糖的主要产物是木二糖和木三糖,并且能够通过转糖苷作用将木三糖转化为木二糖。该木聚糖酶易于纯化并且具有较宽的pH稳定性及良好的热稳定性,具有较大的潜在工业应用价值。     

Cloning, sequencing, and expression of the gene encoding the Clostridium stercorarium xylanase C in Escherichia coli.

The nucleotide sequence of the Clostridium stercorarium F-9 xynC gene, encoding a xylanase XynC, consists of 3,093 bp and encodes a 1,031-amino acids with a molecular weight of 115,322. XynC is a multidomain enzyme composed of an N-terminal signal peptide and six domains in the following order: two thermostabilizing domains, a family 10 xylanase domain, a family IX cellulose-binding domain, and two S-layer homologous domains. Immunological analysis indicated the presence of XynC in the culture supernatant of C. stercorarium F-9 and in the cells, most likely on the cell surface. XynC purified from a recombinant E. coli was highly active toward xylan and slightly active toward p-nitrophenyl-beta-D-xylopyranoside, p-nitrophenyl-beta-D-cellobioside, p-nitrophenyl-beta-D-glucopyranoside, and carboxymethylcellulose. XynC hydrolyzed xylan and xylooligosaccharides larger than xylotriose to produce xylose and xylobiose. This enzyme was optimally active at 85 degrees C and was stable up to 75 degrees C at pH 5.0 and over the pH range of 4 to 7 at 25 degrees C.     

Characterization of a novel, ultra-large xylanolytic complex (xylanosome) from Streptomyces olivaceoviridis E-86

A novel, ultra-large xylanolytic complex (xylanosome) from Streptomyces olivaceoviridis E-86 was purified to homogeneity by ammonium sulfate precipitation and Sephacryl S-300 gel filtration chromatography. The purified xylanosome appeared as a single protein band on the non-denaturing (native) polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) gel with a molecular mass of approximately 1200 kDa. The optimal temperature and pH for xylanase activity was 60 °C and pH 6.0, respectively. The xylanase activity was stable within pH 4.1–10.3. It was stable up to 60 °C at pH 6.0. The xylanosome was highly specific towards oat-spelt xylan, and showed low activity towards corncob powder, but exhibited very low activity towards lichenan, CMC and p-nitrophenyl derivatives. Apparent K_m values of the xylansosome for birchwood, beechwood, soluble oat-spelt and insoluble oat-spelt xylans were 2.5, 3.6, 1.7 and 4.9 mg ml⁻¹, respectively. The main hydrolysis products of birchwood xylan were xylotriose, xylobiose and xylose. Analysis of the products from wheat arabinoxylan degradation by xylanosome confirmed that the enzyme had endoxylanase and debranching activities, with xylotriose, xylobiose, xylose and arabinose as the main degradation products. These unique properties of the purified xylanosome from Streptomyces olivaceoviridis E-86 make this enzymatic complex attractive for biotechnological applications.     

Production and Properties of Extracellular Endoxylanase from Neurospora crassa

Neurospora crassa 870 produced 14 and 0.025 U of extracellular xylanase (1,4-beta-d-xylan xylanohydrolase; EC 3.2.1.8) and beta-xylosidase (1,4-beta-xylan xylohydrolase; EC 3.2.1.37) per ml, respectively, in 4 days when commercial xylan was used as a carbon source. The effects of pH and carbon sources on xylanase production by N. crassa are discussed. Two xylanases (I and II) were purified and had pI values of 4.8 and 4.5 and molecular weights of 33,000 and 30,000. The maximum degree of hydrolysis of xylan by the extracellular culture broth was 66% in 4 h. The end products of xylan hydrolysis by xylanase I and II showed the presence of xylose, xylobiose, xylotriose, xylotetraose, xylopentose, and arabinose, indicating that they are endoxylanases capable of hydrolyzing 1,3-alpha-l-arabinofuranosyl branch points. Both xylanases showed activity toward carboxymethyl cellulose but no activity toward para-nitrophenyl-beta-d-xyloside or laminarin. Xylanase I showed appreciable activity toward para-nitrophenyl-beta-d-glucoside, whereas xylanase II was inactive.     

Bacteria engineered for fuel ethanol production: current status

The lack of industrially suitable microorganisms for converting biomass into fuel ethanol has traditionally been cited as a major technical roadblock to developing a bioethanol industry. In the last two decades, numerous microorganisms have been engineered to selectively produce ethanol. Lignocellulosic biomass contains complex carbohydrates that necessitate utilizing microorganisms capable of fermenting sugars not fermentable by brewers' yeast. The most significant of these is xylose. The greatest successes have been in the engineering of Gram-negative bacteria: Escherichia coli, Klebsiella oxytoca, and Zymomonas mobilis. E. coli and K. oxytoca are naturally able to use a wide spectrum of sugars, and work has concentrated on engineering these strains to selectively produce ethanol. Z. mobilis produces ethanol at high yields, but ferments only glucose and fructose. Work on this organism has concentrated on introducing pathways for the fermentation of arabinose and xylose. The history of constructing these strains and current progress in refining them are detailed in this review.     

De novo prediction of three-dimensional structures for major protein families

The family 10 xylanase from Streptomyces olivaceoviridis E-86 contains a (beta/alpha)(8)-barrel as a catalytic domain, a family 13 carbohydrate binding module (CBM) as a xylan binding domain (XBD) and a Gly/Pro-rich linker between them. The crystal structure of this enzyme showed that XBD has three similar subdomains, as indicated by the presence of a triple-repeated sequence, forming a galactose binding lectin fold similar to that found in the ricin toxin B-chain. Comparison with the structure of ricin/lactose complex suggests three potential sugar binding sites in XBD. In order to understand how XBD binds to the xylan chain, we analyzed the sugar-complex structure by the soaking experiment method using the xylooligosaccharides and other sugars. In the catalytic cleft, bound sugars were observed in the xylobiose and xylotriose complex structures. In the XBD, bound sugars were identified in subdomains alpha and gamma in all of the complexes with xylose, xylobiose, xylotriose, glucose, galactose and lactose. XBD binds xylose or xylooligosaccharides at the same sugar binding sites as in the case of the ricin/lactose complex but its binding manner for xylose and xylooligosaccharides is different from the galactose binding mode in ricin, even though XBD binds galactose in the same manner as in the ricin/galactose complex. These different binding modes are utilized efficiently and differently to bind the long substrate to xylanase and ricin-type lectin. XBD can bind any xylose in the xylan backbone, whereas ricin-type lectin recognizes the terminal galactose to sandwich the large sugar chain, even though the two domains have the same family 13 CBM structure. Family 13 CBM has rather loose and broad sugar specificities and is used by some kinds of proteins to bind their target sugars. In such enzyme, XBD binds xylan, and the catalytic domain may assume a flexible position with respect to the XBD/xylan complex, inasmuch as the linker region is unstructured.     

Saccharification of xylan by an amyloglucosidase of Termitomyces clypeatus and synergism in the presence of xylanase

Summary An amyloglucosidase from a mycelial culture of the mushroom Termitomyces clypeatus hydrolysed larch wood xylan independently and synergistically with an endo-(14) xylanase of the same fungus. The glucoamylase saccharified xylan predigested with xylanase at a faster rate compared to that of xylanase acting on amylase-digested xylan. However, overall saccharification of xylan in both cases was the same. Only glucose was liberated from xylan by amylase digestion whereas xylose, xylobiose and other oligosaccharides were liberated during xylanase digestion. The synergistic response of enzyme combinations was reflected in the liberation of glucose from xylan, rather than xylose. Glucoamylase and xylanase activities on soluble and insoluble fractions of larch wood xylan with different xylose and glucose contents suggested that synergism in xylanolysis by the presence of glucoamylase was dependent on the activity of the participating xylanase on the xylan preparation. It is suggested that possibly -glucosidic linkages are present in xylan and that amyloglucosidase might be involved in xylanolysis. Correspondence to: S. Sengupta     

Optimization of cellulase-free xylanase production by a novel yeast strain

Summary A novel yeast strain, NCIM 3574, isolated from a decaying wood produced up to 570 IU ml^–1 of xylanolytic enzymes when grown on medium containing 4% xylan. The yeast strain also produced xylanase activity (40–50 IU ml^–1) in the presence of soluble carbon sources like xylose or arabinose. No xylanase activity was detected when the organism was grown on glucose. The crude xylanase preparation showed no activity towards cellulolytic substrates but low levels of -xylosidase (0.1 IU ml^–1) and -l-arabinofuranosidase (0.05 IU ml^–1) were detected. The temperature and pH optima for the crude xylanase preparation were 55°C and 4.5 respectively. The crude xylanase produced mainly xylose from xylan within 5 min. Prolonged hydrolysis of xylan produced xylobiose and arabinose, in addition to xylose, as the end products. The presence of arabinose as one of the end products in xylan hydrolysate could be due to the low levels of arabinofuranosidase enzyme present in the crude fermentation broth.     

产乙醇工程菌研究进展

伴随着21世纪的到来,低油价的时代也悄然落幕。简要概述了燃料乙醇产生菌代谢工程的研究进展,包括了利用淀粉、戊糖及纤维素的工程酵母构建,运动发酵单胞菌利用戊糖工程菌的构建,引入外源乙醇合成途径的大肠埃希氏菌和产酸克雷伯氏菌等。对燃料乙醇的重视将促进开发能利用廉价原料和要求粗放的工程菌株用于高产乙醇的生产过程,以降低成本和能耗,其中能利用生淀粉的工程酵母及利用木质纤维素水解物的运动发酵单胞菌工程菌有较大的工业化潜力。     

海枣曲霉木聚糖酶降解寡聚木糖的特性

利用滤纸层析或ＡｃｒｙｌｅｘＰ－２凝胶过滤从落叶松木聚糖硫酸水解液中分离纯化子木二糖至木五糖。采用硅胶薄层层析分析底物和产物的方法研究了海枣霉木聚糖酶降解寡聚木糖的特点。此酶作用于寡糖的最适ＰＨ为５．０,终产物为Ｘ和Ｘ２。酶作用于Ｘ３、Ｘ４及Ｘ５的相对初速度分别为１、３４和４００,Ｘ２几乎不被酶解,推断该酶的底物结合部位至少具有５个亚位点,在高底物浓度,低酶量,远离最适ＰＨ以及在反应初期都能检测到     

Cloning, sequencing, and expression of a xylanase gene from the extreme thermophile Dictyoglomus thermophilum Rt46B.1 and activity of the enzyme on fiber-bound substrate.

A genomic library of the Dictyoglomus sp. strain Rt46B.1 was constructed in the phage vector lambda ZapII and screened for xylanase activity. A plaque expressing xylanase activity, designated B6-77, was isolated and shown to contain a genomic insert of 5.3 kb. Subcloning revealed that the xylanase activity was restricted to a internal 1,507-bp PstI-HindIII fragment which was subsequently sequenced and shown to contain a single complete open reading frame coding for a single-domain xylanase, XynA, with a putative length of 352 amino acids. Homology comparisons show that XynA is related to the family F group of xylanases. The temperature and pH optima of the recombinant enzyme were determined to be 85 degrees C and pH 6.5, respectively. However, the enzyme was active across a broad pH range, with over 50% activity between pH 5.5 and 9.5. XynA was shown to be a true endo-acting xylanase, being capable of hydrolyzing xylan to xylotriose and xylobiose, but it could not hydrolyze xylobiose to monomeric xylose. XynA was also shown to hydrolyze xylan present in Pinus radiata kraft pulp, indicating that it may be of use as an aid in pulp bleaching. The equivalent xylanase gene was also isolated from the related bacterium Dictyoglomus thermophilum, and DNA sequencing showed these genes to be identical, which, together with the 16S small-subunit rRNA gene sequencing data, indicates that Rt46B.1 and D. thermophilum are very closely related.     

Xylanolytic Activity of Clostridium acetobutylicum

Of 20 strains of Clostridium spp. screened, 17 hydrolyzed larch wood xylan. Two strains of Clostridium acetobutylicum, NRRL B527 and ATCC 824, hydrolyzed xylan but failed to grow on solid media with larch xylan as the sole carbon source; however, strain ATCC 824 was subsequently found to grow on xylan under specified conditions in a chemostat. These two strains possessed cellulolytic activity and were therefore selected for further studies. In cellobiose-limited continuous cultures, strain NRRL B527 produced maximum xylanase activity at pH 5.2. Strain ATCC 824 produced higher xylanase, xylopyranosidase, and arabinofuranosidase activities in chemostat culture with xylose than with any other soluble carbon source as the limiting nutrient. The activities of these enzymes were markedly reduced when the cells were grown in the presence of excess glucose. The xylanase showed maximum activity at pH 5.8 to 6.0 and 65°C. The enzyme was stable on the alkaline side of pH 5.2 but was unstable below this pH value. The extracellular xylanolytic activity from strain ATCC 824 hydrolyzed 12% of the larch wood xylan during a 24-h incubation period, yielding xylose, xylobiose, and xylotriose as the major hydrolysis products. Strain ATCC 824, after being induced to grow in batch culture in xylan medium supplemented with a low concentration of xylose, failed to grow reproducibly in unsupplemented xylan medium. A mutant obtained by mutagenesis with ethyl methanesulfonate was able to grow reproducibly in batch culture on xylan. Both the parent strain and the mutant were able to grow with xylan as the sole source of carbohydrate in continuous culture with the pH maintained at either 5.2 or 6.0. Under these conditions, the cells utilized approximately 50% of the xylan.     

Cloning of a Bacillus sp. BP-23 gene encoding a xylanase with high activity against aryl xylosides

Abstract The xynB gene encoding a xylanase from the recently isolated Bacillus sp. strain BP-23 has been cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli . The enzyme produced in this host shows a molecular size of 41 kDa and a pI of 4.5. The pH and temperature at which the highest activity was found were 5.5 and 50°C respectively. Crude xylanase B showed activity on xylan, aryl xylosides, xylotetraose and xylotriose, while xylobiose was not hydrolyzed by the enzyme. Xylanase B showed high specific activity on aryl xylosides, probably as a result of the transxylosidase activity detected.